SAO Alicization in Perpetuity
by Grafian
Summary: Set shortly after Kirito wakes up from Underworld. He finds himself having a hard time readjusting to who he was before he stepped into Underworld... With an additional four/fourteen years worth of memories, old comforts no longer feel the same. Watch as Kirito and Alice explore both the Real and the Virtual world, while the two of them grow closer. [KiritoxAlice]
1. ARC1-CH1: Realizations

**[Sun, May 12th - Few more small corrections. Nothing major, just for continuity's sake]**

**[Made some updates. Essentially followed some advice regarding the spacing of paragraphs and such! Thanks Flo463! I suppose I'm more used to writing essays than stories written on websites :P But I'll try to make smaller paragraphs from here on out!]**

**Author Note: **Hey there folks. My second story for SAO is here! Like my other story, Aincrad Descended: Tales of Porosia, I have written out the first few chapters of Alicization in Perpetuity in advance as well. I will post them over the next few days as I try to proof-read them a little more and start working on the next batch of chapters. Please forgive any obvious errors, as English isn t my first language. This is a story set after the Alicization arc ends. It doesnt take the more recently started Unital Ring into account and rather chooses to explore a different avenue, more oriented towards Underworld and Alice her struggles with being recognized as a Human being. The first few chapters may be a bit heavy on the real world stories, but you will find that their adventures in ALO with a... particularly mindbuzzing questline will start to take up a lot of space as well. As always, please do let me know if you have any suggestions, advice, comments!

* * *

It was the first time he set foot in this room in over two months. His room, or so he had to keep telling himself. It felt alien and cold to him. After making over four years worth of memories in Underworld, his dreary bedroom in the real world didn't feel like his anymore. He had simply been away too long. He lovingly thought back to the apartment in the North Centoria Swordcraft Academy that he had shared with Eugeo. Even if they hadn't lived there for long, the memory of the rustic wood paneling and ever present fresh flowers, unceasingly placed in their room by Ronye and Tieze... That memory felt so much more like home. Even his apartment with Asuna in the Central Cathedral felt more like home than where he currently was.

He was glad to be back in the real world, but it was difficult to process the fact he also missed so much from his other life. The kind villagers of Rulid. The young Selka who tried so hard to live up to the memory of her big sister. Sadore, the craftsman who chiseled his Night Sky Sword, and after the war became the first mechanist of the Central Cathedral. Ronye and Tieze... The sweet and innocent valets of himself and Eugeo that were put through such a horrific trauma because of them and continued to fight their way up to becoming full-fledged Integrity Knights. Eugeo...

Almost immediately he felt a sharp stab in his chest. He had had a difficult few days. He wouldn't ever see Eugeo again. And his flaxen-haired best friend wasn't the only one. Almost all of his Underworld friends, apart from Selka who had been put in Deep Sleep (as he had apparently told Alice before his and Asuna's minds were wiped clean of most of the 200 additional years they spent in Underworld) would be long gone by now.

Immediately after Asuna her own recovery period was done, she had started paying him daily visits in his hospital room, helping him with his physical exercises - as he had done much the same for her once, after he had freed her from ALO and Sugou... But that had already been four years ago. No, that was early last year... The extra memories he had made kept confusing him. He felt... Older, wearier. It didn't help that Asuna's memory wipe removed all but the first two months she spent with him in Underworld. While he kept over a year and a half after the great war.

At first Asuna's visits had helped him fight back the anger and sadness he still so dearly felt about Eugeo's passing and missing all his friends. But as the days of his recovery passed, he became more and more irritated with her presence. He had told her about him and all she had forgotten, and he had been a little surprised to hear that she had already heard about Eugeo in great detail from Ronye, one night in Underworld.

The thought of Asuna logging in to the Underworld and spending a night curled up in bed around him with his former apprentice, as well as his former master Sortiliena and the Knight Alice discussing their experiences of him made him nervous already. He could only be genuinely relieved he had been comatose for that talk...

Still, even though he told her everything he could about Eugeo, it still didn't seem enough to help him deal with his grief. When waking up after SAO/ALO they had had each other and their shared experiences. But Eugeo had been a brother to Kirito. And that loss was just something you had to experience for yourself to understand properly.

While he would always feel regret and guilt over some of the friends he had had in SAO who didn't make it till the end of the game - such as the Black Cats - with Eugeo and to a lesser degree the others that were gone it was as if a literal part of him had been ripped out.

By the end of the fifth day, when Asuna said goodbye to him with a hug and a kiss, he caught himself feeling genuinely relieved that Asuna was leaving. He wasn't really sure why he felt so uneasy with her presence. She didn't seem to fully understand the significance Eugeo held to him, but she tried her best to comfort him and kept being supportive whenever he frustrated and inconsiderately shrugged off her concern...

While he felt a tinge of regret at seeing her slightly faltering smile at those times, he couldn't bring himself to keep up the usual joyful mask he often managed to put up for her before the Underworld...

As Kazuto had absentmindedly taken place on his bed for the first time in four yea- no. One and a half months he had to keep telling himself - he was pulled from his thoughts by the barely registering ringing sound of his cellphone. Immediately his worries seemed to melt away. He had been looking forward to this call the entire day now.

While Alice had been able to visit him at the hospital once after he and Asuna had woken up, she had been too busy working with dr. Kojirou to stop by again. Alice had been dragged from meeting, to press Q&A, to talk show... She had very little spare time and they had only been able to meet twice more since - both times in ALO. Even there, his friends hadn't given them any opportunity to be alone for a little bit. They still hadn't really had the time to properly talk about... Well, everything that happened.

As he with a wide smile on his face answered with a high-pitched "Heeyy Alice!" - he belatedly realized how nervous he sounded. But when a normally always sweet voice quietly replied "Kirito-kun..." - again adding the affectionate honorific Asuna had seemed peeved she used for him - his breath stopped for a moment.

While he hadn't actually made that many memories with Alice, he knew she had spent a long time taking care of his comatose self, secluded in a little cabin in the woods. There was a warmth in his heart that sprung up whenever he saw her or spoke with her. It didn't correspond to the memories he had, but he had immediately felt that they were close friends. Something inside him just knew they had gone through more than anyone should in a lifetime, for each other.

Now on hearing the coldness and monotony in her voice, he was immediately worried. While Alice had always been confident and almost inexplicably happy whenever they had met since waking up, dr. Koujiro had shared her concerns with him that Alice was unreasonably pushing herself.

Apparently not even willing to accept the spare few rest days she kept trying to force on the girl. Kirito had, at the time, attributed it to her Knightly dedication and work ethic. Later he couldn't help but start to doubt that. Her worldview had been shattered and now she found herself in a strange world, needing to fight for the right to even be recognized as a Human being. Not to mention the fate of her entire world hanging in the balance. It must be extremely taxing and confirming his fears, she took his silence as a sign to speak in a quiet voice "I-..I'm tired, Kirito-kun... It just.. Nothing feel like it's enough". A frustrated, long sigh followed before she added "No one in this world will ever see me as... as real. I-I'm not even Human anymore here...".

For a moment he remembered eerily familiar flashes of memories. Something buried deep in his mind beneath a layer of impenetrable fog. A log cabin. But not the one he had spent so much time in, his home with Asuna and Yui on Floor 22 of Aincrad. An unfamiliar cabin. A blonde haired, blue eyed girl in a blue summer dress. Giving him a hopeful smile betraying profound sadness, as she moved a spoon with some kind of food near his face. Alice... _Was that when she took care of me?_ It only lasted a moment, but that little sliver of a memory was instantly burned into his mind.

Steeling himself he cleared his throat and as confidently and resolutely as possible replied "That's not true. It may take some time, but I know we will get there". The girl on the other side of the call let out an annoyed sigh and startled him a little with the sudden intensity to her voice "But Kirito-kun I've been working for weeks no-" then she suddenly paused. A few moments passed before with a confused and quiet voice she finally asked "'We?'... Do you mean you... you're going to help me...?".

He collected his thoughts and carefully considered what he was going to say for a moment, before softly continuing "Of course. We... I... Owe it to all the friends I lost. All the friends I made in... Underworld".

He paused and swallowed "They may... They may be long gone by now... But they would want their world to live on. Even if two hundred years have passed and much has changed, I... We owe it to them to protect it".

Not hearing a reply from Alice, he said with a genuinely warm smile on his face and leaking through his voice "And besides... You're important to me, Alice. If I can help you in... any way, I will". It took a little while, up to the point where Kazuto started to wonder whether he should have said that...

He heard in an almost too soft voice to register "...Thanks... Thank you, Kirito-kun.. I needed to hear that..". He chuckled, hoping to comfort her a bit and said as joyful as he could "I've been talking to dr. Koujiro and she told me you had some... saved up vacation days, why aren't you using them to take a well earned break?".

He again felt a bit worried, not hearing an immediate response, but then Alice quietly replied "Well... They won't really let me go outside anyway... So if I can just sit in... In the cafeteria there, or use the internet a bit... What's... What's really the point".

It took him a moment to reply, as he racked his brain as to how to help her. Then he carefully asked "Well... Maybe Koujiro-san will... will let you visit me here? I just got back home today and I have nothing to do really...".

As he said that he realized Asuna would come over, but almost instantly decided that Alice could really need a friend more right now. "So... why not tomorrow?". It had again stayed silent for a bit, but then she had startled him with her sudden happy exclamation. After discussing it for a bit, she had confessed to feeling a bit nervous about requesting anything at all, even if Koujiro-san had suggested her taking some time off.

He got the feeling she wanted to stay resolute in front of the only people she could really rely on to fight for her. Without realizing it, he had already insisted to call Koujiro-san himself to arrange it. That way, the request wouldn't come from her. After saying their goodbyes he happily concluded Alice had sounded a lot more like herself near the end of their call. With no trace of that cold monotony in her voice remaining.

He was genuinely surprised when, after carefully and nervously proposing his plan to help Alice relax a little bit to dr. Koujiro, she had replied enthusiastically, adding she had been silently hoping for it. Alice would be brought to his house at 10AM the next day. _After Sugu goes to school..._ Kazuto absentmindedly noted.

She insisted on sending armed protection along with her, but eventually reluctantly agreed to 'Kazuto_-san_'s insistence that they stay in their car outside. He had always found the choice of respectful honorific she used for him a little odd, considering he was several years younger than the acclaimed scientist, but shrugged it off.

The noble Knight in Alice wouldn't be able to drop formality and genuinely relax in front of co-workers, he just calmly explained. He had hesitated a little bit when he realized he had made plans with Asuna, but after failing to come up with a decent message eventually just texted her "Hey Asuna, sorry but I'm going to be busy tomorrow. I'll make it up to you!".

Quickly locking his phone afterwards - too guilty and confused about the fact that he couldn't tell her that he was going to spend the day with Alice, to find it in himself to wait for her reply. Not long after, he fell into a nervous but happy sleep with a smile on his face, thinking of things to do with Alice the next day. He had to come up with something fun to do cooped up at his home all day.

Crap! Sugu will be home from school early tomorrow!. He sighed as he drifted off to sleep, with a last thought shooting through his mind. Oh well... Cross that bridge when we get to it...

* * *

Kazuto had woken up unusually early, at 6AM. He wasn't sure why he was so nervous to spend the day with Alice. He thought for a few minutes about what he could do with her all day, but then recalled her saying a while ago that she really wanted to learn to understand all the pop-culture references her co-workers always used. With a wide grin he went over to his computer to sign up for one of the popular movie and television show streaming services. He had never felt the need to use one before, as he always preferred the participatory part of video games over television or movies. Making sure it contained some of the bigger movies, he happily concluded that would fill a lot of time.

After somewhat nervously having breakfast with Sugu (his aunt and adoptive mother Midori wouldn't return from a business trip for another three days) and avoiding questions about what he would be doing that day, he watched some television to calm his nerves. The moment Sugu left for school, his mind went into overdrive. He quickly showered, brushed his teeth and got dressed, before rushing out the door to get snacks and drinks for their movie marathon.

It took him his walk to the stores in his neighborhood to notice how tired he was from the relatively short jog. He somewhat shockingly realized that he still had to build up his strength and shouldn't overexert himself... And then to his further and greater shock, he realized Alice in her android body would not be able to eat or drink...

Looking around in the store for what to buy now, he decided on a few simple snacks for himself, as he did need to eat and drink. Then he noticed the wide variety of flowers they had in stock. A remark Alice had made about the dreary and dull grey offices of RATH, where the Marine Resource Assessment Survey (the group led by dr. Koujiro that was handling the situation around Alice and the Underworld) was housed - and her frustration at not yet being able to see the outside world properly for what it had to offer, he immediately decided to brighten up his own home a little bit... With a smile and full bags he made his way back home, at a slightly more careful pace.

Even after Alice realized that the six months she spent growing attached to Kirito and caring for him were only in her memory, not his... She still felt a connection to the black haired boy who had saved her and her entire world. While Koujiro was supportive, she wasn't really an equal. Alice depended on her to help her be recognized as a Human being...

She could never truly relax and be herself around her, however kind she always was to Alice. In a sense, Kirito was the only one she felt she could really be herself with. Even if that was most likely a one-sided connection... When she realized how close Kirito and Asuna were and after dr. Koujiro had explained their history in SAO, ALO and real life to her, she had felt an unmistakable dagger in her heart.

She hadn't even really realized how she had grown to feel about him... But when she got word the two were waking up she instantly decided to at least earn his friendship. He was her best chance at making an actual friend. Somehow who would at least know what she went through in Underworld and lived through some of those things himself...

In a way, he was the only person who truly knew who she was, even more than she could remember herself. After seeing Asuna and him interact herself, seeing the obvious love and connection they shared, she had grown more reserved. Realizing she would never be able to get to such a point with him.

She had focused on her work at RATH instead. Using it as an excuse not to have to face them too much. She was happily surprised when he had started reaching out to her himself. Eventually convincing her to at least talk over the long distance communication devices they called 'cellphones' every few nights.

When he happily suggested that she come over to his house... She had been too shocked to even speak for a while. But then she realized she had been an idiot, like he had told her multiple times in short concession. Hanging on the outside of the Central Cathedral. To her shame she sounded far too excited at the prospect.

She was now nervously sitting in her seat in the 'minivan', accompanied by a total of five armed guards. She had immediately objected to their presence, but was calmed a bit when dr. Koujiro had hastily added Kirito-san had already insisted they stay in the car. A slight blush had crept over her face when she realized he had gone through the trouble for her, which she hastily shook off. Sadly, dr. Koujiro seemed to have noticed her awkward moment, as she gave her a teasing grin - but thankfully refrained from any comments. For now...

She sighed to get rid of her nerves as they pulled up to the Kirigaya residence. She could tell it wasn't an overly large or small house for the residents of this city, but it seemed to give off a sense of welcoming. It wasn't as gloomy as some of the houses in the area.

She was escorted to the front door by one of the guards and almost immediately after knocking, a nervously smiling Kirito opened the door and awkwardly greeted her and bowed to the guard, after leading her inside. The guard had insisted to do a check around the house first, to which she noticed Kirito clearly reluctantly, agreed.

After the door slammed shut again, they suddenly found themselves alone. He was stunned for a moment, looking at that blue sundress... He could swear he had seen it before... Even Alice wearing it? Many times... But that was impossible, he shook his head and buried it.

An awkward silence fell for a moment when they found themselves alone in his house. He did feel a... connection to Alice. Having shared in some of the most heartbreaking moments of his time in Underworld, he couldn't help but feel he knew her better than even some of his friends from SAO. But he realized they hadn't actually spent that much time together. At least not while he was conscious. Eventually he couldn't help but sigh and chuckle when he realized how stupid they were being. She seemed to realize the same thing and soon joined him.

A little more relaxed he know led her into the living room. He immediately noticed her eyes widen at the sight of the four vases of modest flower bouquets spread around the room and adjoining kitchen. She looked at him with surprise and carefully asked "Do.. Do you always have so many flowers in your home, Kirito-kun?".

He felt his cheeks start to redden a little while he nervously said "Well.. Eh, no.. But I was in the store a-and I remembered you saying how grey and dreary the RATH offices are and so, I-I thought I could put some more colour in here.. for your vis-". He was startled when the blond haired girl cut him off by giving him a big hug and burying her face in his chest.

As she quietly whispered "Thanks.. Kirito-kun, that.. that's really nice of you" he had recovered enough from his initial shock to hug her back. He felt her ease up a bit as well, after him returning the gesture.

Alice had acted instinctively as Kirito confirmed her hope that he cared about her... At least she really had a friend in this strange world. She had felt a little less alone. Then she started to realize what she was doing. He had frozen up, probably in shock, while she firmly hugged him, pressing her face into his chest...

She froze up too now, at the silence and managed to whisper a thank you. But then he hugged her back, with those warm, comforting arms, just seeming to tell her that everything was alright. When she felt her face redden considerably and they broke up their sudden bout of intimacy, she noticed in relief that he too had furiously started blushing as he awkwardly chuckled.

She had marveled at his family's house as he gave her a tour. It was so much more lively and welcoming than the generous, if bland living quarters and cafeteria at RATH. She had been outside of it to do press conferences, or go to meetings and conventions, but those had always been public places. And if she was honest, they had been very intimidating.

Bright, mechanical lights, flashes from recording devices, more people than she considered to be possible living in one city. It had been dazzling. This seemed almost as a calming haven of tranquility out in a pasture somewhere in comparison to her previous experiences of 'Tokyo'.

When he awkwardly finished his tour for Alice in his bedroom, he realized that it may be a bit forward to bring her to his bedroom. But when she seemed to be happily looking around at the various computer components and games scattered around the various shelves and cabinets without a care in the world - he realized Underworld and Japan, while similar, also had many differing views on social conventions and formalities. He sighed quietly.

He hadn't realized he spaced out for as long as he had when he blinked at Alice's calm voice asking him "So, what's next?". He suddenly saw the blond haired girl staring up at him with her impossibly beautifully crafted cybernetic eyes. For a moment he was admiring the artistic detail put into those deep blue eyes that seemed almost more real than actual eyes... When he realized he had been staring straight into them, ignoring her question, for probably as much as twenty seconds already...

Quick, think, say something! "Ehh.. Well, I remembered you wanted t-to learn about those p-pop culture references and famous movies... right?". When he saw her blink in surprise and then nod with a smile he continued a bit relieved that his idea was accepted "Well I thought we could watch a few of them?".

When he asked her whether she wanted to watch them in his room or downstairs in the living room she innocently replied that his room would be fine, seeing how they were already there. He had agreed. After taking out his laptop and opening the streaming service, he froze up. His mind was finally starting to catch up with the consequences of that decision. He had only one chair, and his desk was not built to be seated in front of with two people... She could sit on his bed.. And he would just slide up next to the bed in his desk chair. Yes. That would be appropriate, he hoped.

When she had insisted that that was idiotic, as then one of them would be at the wrong height to properly view the device, he had hesitantly taken place on the other side of his (luckily) two person bed.

Leaving a respectful distance between them, he put up the first of his cultural classics list. The first movie in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. During the largest part of the movie he noticed Alice was very in to the plot. Of course the fantasy creatures of the Underworld had been largely inspired by the races of Tolkien's epic.

She remarked a few times how eerily similar some of the creatures were to Dark Territory creatures and inhabitants. During the fellowship's subsequent fight in the Goblin infested Mines of Moria she was looking a little scared and Kazuto was starting to worry about her... This didn't seem like she was really still enjoying the movie...

When the large fiery demon known as a Balrog appeared, her face had turned pale and she had slid up to him and buried her face into his chest. While he was shocked and carefully started trying to comfort her by calmly stroking her hair as he carefully embraced her, she asked in a shaking voice "D-Do you truly have such creatures in... in the real world? It looked more terrifying than anything from the Underworld...".

It took a few moments for Kazuto to realize what the problem was, so he hurriedly explained that this wasn't real, it wasn't an accurate history or anything, it was all fiction. It took a bit more time to explain the concept of watching such horrors for entertainment, but eventually she did recognize the thrill of facing off against intimidating creatures during her time as an Integrity Knight - when kazuto likened it to that.

As they silently watched the remainder of the movie, they eventually realized how close they were sitting to each other. Alice was still in his gentle embrace as she leaned back against his chest while they both watched the screen of his laptop placed in front of them on his bed. Both seemed to notice this at roughly the same time and froze up. Both of them equally unsure of whether to awkwardly separate and try to reclaim some respectable space, or chickening out and desperately ignore their situation.

They eventually, silently agreed to the latter by not moving and instead nervously following the remainder of the movie. Almost at the end of the movie the both of them were so focused on nervously pretending to be fully engrossed by the plot and not noticing their position, that they almost jumped up to the ceiling (but managed to freeze up entirely, with wide, startled eyes) when his door slammed open and Suguha stuck her head in and shouted "OOOONNIII-CHAAAN I'M HOOO-".

As he watched his cousin/sister's shocked face and wide eyes at seeing an unfamiliar blonde girl lying in his arms, on his bed, undoubtedly staring at her with eyes resembling those of a shocked deer staring down a car's headlights - the gears in his mind slowly caught up to him once again realizing Sugu would be home early today...

Before he could find it in himself to say something, Alice shot up and nervously got up off the bed before giving a nervous, formal bow and trying to calmly say "Eh.. Eh oh my apologies but you must be... ah, Suguha-san, nice to see you again!". Seeing Sugu's shocked expression and wary look she quickly continued "Oh! I realize that I look differently from my ALO body, but I'm Alice... from Underworld".

Suguha seemed to relax a bit and then calmly said with a smile "Welcome Alice-san, I hope _Onii-chan_". She said his name with a frown and a death stare directed at him as she continued "has been_ respectful_ enough around you?". Kazuto started to blush and stutter incoherent thoughts struggling to take shape.

Alice spaced out for a moment, but then quickly and nervously replied he had been a perfect gentleman. Suguha seemed a little bit relieved, but still continued shooting him death glares before she coldly asked, while still looking his way "Has onii-chan shown you our _dojo_?". He froze up and swallowed at what that question meant. All his embarrassment instantly made way for unadulterated fear.

As Kazuto nervously followed Sugu and Alice outside to their training dojo, he somewhat happily noted Alice seemed to cheer up considerably when he explained that the two of them performed a swordsmanship sport and showing her the wooden swords - of which they had several, considering how Suguha seemed to regularly break them somehow.

When his sister had suggested that they would spar a bit to show how the style looked, Kazuto realized his fear had come true. Dressing up in the protective gear sets they had, they took their places. Suguha was considerably calmer he noticed, almost as if fueled by a cold fury... He sighed and cracked his neck. He steeled himself. He had a name to uphold after all. The Black Swordsman. He could tell Alice saw him as an icon almost after witnessing him turn day into night and launching a barrage of essentially meteors at the dark god Vector in their final battle. It made him a little nervous, but he also didn't want her to realize he was much. Less. Significant in real life...

Sugu confidently stepped up to her position and stared menacingly at her onii-chan through their masks. She knew her eyes were not visible to him, but from his nervous posture, she also knew he got the vibe... She belatedly realized he had managed to calm himself, when he confidently asked her "One, or two sword Kendo?".

She chuckled and grinningly said "You know that dual-wielding thing is just something you do in-game, right?". But when he shrugged she just teasingly said "alright then... But it's your fault if you get hurt!". After her brother had picked up a second Shinai and confidently took a two-handed stance she had never seen him take in real life sparring before - but she knew all too well from watching him fight in ALO...

He can't be serious... She incredulously thought to herself. But while eyeing him over, she realized it was the exact same, confident stance that showed no true weak spots... She swallowed as she steeled her nerves and got ready in her own, traditional starting pose.

She was shocked when as she swung forward as fast as she could, her brother dexterously used his main hand to parry her shinai while sidestepping and finishing it off with a soft tap from his off-hand shinai on her back. "Point" he stated in a dead calm and serious voice. Kazuto was feigning his newfound confidence...

He knew he wasn't too sure of his one-handed skills against his competitive duelist kendo prodigy sister. Then he realized he might as well try... Maybe with two... When he scored his first point almost instantly, he himself was shocked by his speed and the apparent muscle memory - which honestly, he couldn't possibly have with his real world body. He somehow found it in himself to confidently declare his point. It took a few moments, but then his sister regained her composure and once again took her starting position, a different one this time, however. A clearly more aggressive stance...

They went on for another full, five minutes. Kazuto had scored his second point in rapid succession, but then took two points in return, although significantly harder won. Eventually, they reached the before hand agreed five wins total... By Kazuto. His sister hadn't been able to score a point after those initial two... He was incredulously staring at his sister, after removing his mask.

She returned much the same gaze, when Alice burst out clapping. "That was incredible swordsmanship, Suguha-san, Kirito-kun!" Alice happily shouted as she gave him specifically a warm smile. He noticed from the corner of his eye as he awkwardly smiled and rubbed the back of his neck, that Suguha frowned a little and sent him a death stare over the affectionate -kun, much the same as Asuna always did. Then she quickly became a little happier, if still dazed, and thanked Alice. She took a few moments to awkwardly stare at him, but then carefully said "I've never seen you fight with two shinais before in the real world, onii-chan...".

His sister eyed his response carefully and he stumbled over what to say "E-eeh... Well, I.. I knew of course that I couldn't beat you one-handed! So I uh... I thought I'd give it a try...?". He finished with a hopeful, nervous smile. His sister looked at him incredulously and shook her head while muttering softly and giving him a judging stare "Always trying to impress the pretty girls, onii-chan... seriously".

Alice noticeably started blushing. It took a moment, but then she calmed herself and plainly stated "Alright, my turn". Upon their incredulous shocked stares she giggled and looked at him with a scarily confident stare "After all, I did say we would continue our duel once the Administrator was dealt with. Seeing how we were blown out of the Central Cathedal and you went on to make me care for you for six months, we haven't had the time".

When they both took their places, equipped in protective gear, Alice with one Shinai and he with two... He was nervous. He couldn't help himself. What if he could break a component of her body? That would surely be expensive... He barely had time to cross his swords when she came down with what resembled the Avalanche Sword Skill. A strong, two-handed strike from above. He somewhat clumsily sidestepped a little, but he was too nervous and out of it at that point he barely registered her foot tripping him.

As he looked up after his three second daze, Alice her shinai was pointing straight at his face in front of his mask. She chuckled and teasingly asked "Does this mean I scored the first point?". Suguha started laughing at this point and said "Wow, maybe I just had a bad day".

After just over another ten minutes, her brother and Alice were standing in their respective starting positions opposite each other, both heavily panting from the exertion. Suguha had been staring with wide eyes and an open mouth for the past eight of them. She had to admit, Alice was tough. She had long since given up on the idea that she could beat the girl herself.

The blonde haired Knight used a style very reminiscent of some two-handed sword skills from ALO, but far more fluently and trained than she had thought possible. She once again had to remind herself Alice had essentially been indoctrinated by years long training to be a warrior priestess... A Holy Knight. And looking over at her brother... He was fighting at what looked to be his best, giving it his all.

The scary, focused stare in his eyes and the grin of pure excitement at such a duel, as well as his razor sharp techniques and his dexterity - all reminded her of Kirito, the Black Swordsman, as he fought when his life was on the line. Not her brother Kazuto...

She had been told a little bit about who Alice was, and she knew she had cared for her brother while he was comatose... But he should have no memories of that, and they only knew each other for one day before that... Right? What happened during that day? And what weren't they telling them? Who exactly is this girl that she draws out everything he has, pushes him to his limits?.

As she was thinking about her brother and Alice, she almost missed it when they both shot forward, straight for each other and as she blinked a few times at the fast movement she saw them standing still. They were both frozen in place. With wide eyes she started muttering "A-a... A tie!?".

Kazuto wasn't sure what happened. The entire match had taken place in a haze. Seeing Alice's resolve and her obvious enjoyment at the duels, he had quickly regained his own spirit. He felt more himself now than he had ever since waking up from Underworld. In that moment, he wasn't Kirigaya Kazuto - he was Kirito, the Black Swordsman. He didn't really stop to think at all until he realized the had just finished their last duel. Their ninth duel.

It took him a few more moments before he realized his sidestep had successfully allowed him to place his shinai against Alice her neck. Right when he was about to shout out victoriously, he felt a soft prod against his chest. From how close they were standing, their masked faces less than a hand's width apart, he could just make out the surprised glimmer in those beautiful blue eyes. Her shinai was pointed straight at his heart. Then he heard his sister muttering incredulously that they had reached a tie.

After a few moments of staying frozen in their end position, them having settled themselves as equals, they slowly stood apart and took off their masks. He stared in Alice's blue eyes for a little too long, and as he felt his face redden, he noticed her unmistakable blush as well. She looked down at the ground a little nervously now and stuttered a little "T-that was a good fight... Thanks.. I think I needed that.. To know that I was still... Myself, in this new world and this constructed body".

Kazuto looked at her a bit dumbfounded, unsure of what to say after that confession. She looked up into his eyes now and he saw a resolve there he hadn't seen since they left Underworld. She calmly continued "If I can still fight with a sword, I am still a Knight".

Before Alice realized what she was doing she had walked over to Kirito and given him a big hug. She felt him freeze up and she felt Suguha-san's gaze on her back, but then to her surprise, he (if somewhat awkwardly) hugged her back. After they let go he stuttered "Wow... You're really.. warm, Alice.. I didn't know the gears would heat up like that".

Alice blushed furiously now stuttering that that must indeed be why. She wasn't sure though... Maybe it was just because she had been so nervous hugging him... She shrugged away the thought as Suguha-san cleared her throat and said "Well... That was... weird, but very cool".

After an awkward discussion of their duel, which Kirito confessed to he kind of fought in a daze, not clearly remembering every part, Alice noticed Suguha-san sigh and say "You're so weird sometimes, onii-chan". She couldn't help but interject calmly with a soft smile "Well, Suguha-san, surely you can understand the thrill of a good duel".

She glanced over at Kirito and sighed contently. "I suppose that fight at the Cloudtop Garden was in my mind more often than I realized, Kirito-kun... I had never failed to finish an actual opponent before". She didn't notice Suguha-san's curious stare at that remark. While Kirito took a shower, she absentmindedly discussed the benefits of not being able to sweat with Suguha-san.

Eventually a question Alice had feared would come up for a while now was asked by her, with a curious voice "What exactly happened in the Central Cathedral any way?". Upon seeing Alice's slight frown and deep thoughts she continued carefully "All onii-chan really said was that you fought very briefly, were blown out of the cathedral and climbed up... And that you talked and he convinced you that the Administrator was evil?".

It seemed to take the blonde girl a while to come up with what to say, before she sighed deeply and looked up at her "Very well then, I'll tell you the story". The next fifteen minutes were spent with Alice first describing how she had fully intended to kill Kirito and Eugeo in their duel after they resisted, but how they seemed to be holding back for some reason. And then about how them trying to capture her instead of killing her, led to her and Kirito being blown out the Cathedral.

She went on to describe how she had been ready to give up, not seeing a way out but falling to her death. But how Kirito had called her an idiot! The nerves the commoner had in addressing an Integrity Knight sent down from the heavens! How he had essentially pulled her up the side of the Cathedral as he went on to climb it... "I... I couldn't comprehend that a criminal would... go so far to save me, an Integrity Knight, his enemy!".

After seeing Suguha's confused stare, she realized the girl knew little of the situation in Underworld. So she gave a brief history of the Administrators and she eventually got to the point where Kirito convinced her of the truth. Which had led to her conviction in joining his fight - and subsequently her eye ball exploding... Suguha gasped at that last part and asked carefully "But... didn't t-that hurt terribly? And you still had to climb a long way, right?".

Alice could only chuckle nervously as she said "Well... To be honest I think that's when I... fainted. I only woke up hours later on the 95th floor". Suguha gave her a confused stare "But... How did you get... up there?". Alice shrugged and blushed a little, thinking about it again "Well... Kirito-kun bandaged my eye, as he wasn't skilled enough at the Sacred Arts to fully heal it... And then he... eh, he carried me over his shoulder as he... climbed the last twelve floors...". She left out how she woke up in his arms, him looking down at her with his worried expression...

When she realized how Suguha was giving her weird looks and how all that sounded... She immediately continued to their later fights. Eugeo dramatically dying... Kirito breaking, before she tried to sacrifice herself. She blushed and softly said "He just... He just got up again, and parried the Administrator's strike, which would have cut me clean in half... And he told me I should rest, tha-that he would finish it".

She continued on to describe how he subsequently defeated the great Administrator..., losing an arm in the process. "But then... Something went w-wrong.. Very wrong. There was a bright white light over Kirito-kun and then... then he collapsed". She explained to her briefly what she had later been told was Kirito's soul destroying itself. At that point Suguha had been watching her with wide eyes and a look of shock and horror on her face.

That turned to sadness when she told her the story of those long six months. Caring for a comatose, nearly completely unresponsive Kirito. How they had been alone in the woods for mostly all that time as she wasn't welcome in her father's village. Her having to help him with everything. And confessing how that... How that had given her a new sense of purpose after Alice Zuberg's memories had been lost for good...

Suguha had been stunned by the heart wrenching tale. By the end she realized Alice had good reason to feel a strong connection to her brother... Even... love him? She asked herself. And while that was very unfair towards Asuna, who had been through her own share of traumatic experiences with her brother, he wasn't really at fault either.

Being comatose seems to do that to things... She sighed and softly smiling said "Well I'm just glad the three of you all made it out alive". Alice seemed to perk up a little at that and smiled back at her, nodding. When her brother came back, she shot him a few death glares, but decided to keep him in suspense about it for now.

After Suguha and Kirito had their dinner, she quietly sat there, really hating the limitations of her mechanical body. She missed eating... The siblings seemed to have noticed as they each gave her sorry looks. She quickly said it was alright. Not getting hungry was a bonus too after all... But then Kirito suddenly had an idea and said "I could... take you out for dinner in ALO instead?". He blushed immediately after, realizing what he had said. But Alice quickly replied, before he could change his mind "Oh.. Eh, a-alright, that could be nice?".

While Suguha said that she couldn't come as she still had schoolwork to complete, she gave Kirito a strange glare and walked off to her room. She wondered for a moment what she meant by it, but shrugged it off when Kirito awkwardly waved her over to follow him to his room. As they entered, he seemed to realize something and began grinning from ear to ear. He asked her with an expectant glare in his eyes "Say Alice... You haven't logged into ALO this last week, right?".

She blinked in confusion a few moments, but then realized she had indeed been avoiding them... Him... But as she nodded he just became more excited? "Whyyy...?" She warily asked. But he just chuckled and said "Oh I just have a surprise for you, is all". As he put on his head device and sat back in his chair, he told her that she could use the bed.

* * *

As Kirito said "Link start!", in a far too excited volume, Alice just sighed and uploaded her mind to the ALO server, as she had been taught to do by Higa-san at RATH. As she opened her eyes a few moments later, she was standing outside the Log Cabin that Kirito and Asuna owned. Oh right, I was here last time, wasn't I...". As she thought about her last visit two weeks ago, she let out an involuntary yelp as the door suddenly opened and a wide grinned Kirito came walking up to her in the clearing in front of the cabin "Well? What do you think?".

He asked her teasingly. She muttered a moment in confusion "About wh- what... WHAT?". As her eyes passed to her armour, she noticed not the starter equipment she had been given when first joining ALO. To her sadness, all her equipment from Underworld had been removed, although Kirito soon pointed out that her 'stats', or her abilities, had been taken over from Underworld as closely as possible.

She noticed she had a 1000/1000 in one-handed Swords and a 750/1000 in two-handed Swords. As well as points in several other, to her non-descript 'Skills'. Kirito had even teasingly pointed out she had points in the Woodcutting skill, to which she had blushed profusely, remembering their time together.

This time, however, she was wearing something all too familiar. She was in her full, golden Integrity Knight outfit. Complete with her masterwork blue cape, billowing white skirt, boots... and... a very familiar, ornate sheath hanging from her side. Incredulously she slowly pulled out her... her Fragrant Olive Sword... As she was still in shock, she let Kirito guide her into her menu and equipment screen. There he showed her:

'[Armour of Integrity Knight Alice Synthesis Thirty] - [Unique]

[Sacred Treasure: Fragrant Olive Longsword] - [Unique]'

She was a little irritated that, even though it had very good points according to Kirito, it couldn't split up into deadly flower leaves. But when he guided her to her item list she gasped and brought her hand up to cover her mouth. Tears started to form in the corners of her eyes as she read two item names below each other: [UNDAC001-Amayori] [UNDAC002-Takiguri].

She remembered now how Kirito had changed her dying dragons into eggs, to save their lives and allowing her the chance to bring them back if she ever - when she returns to the Underworld... She jumped through her screen, not being able to contain herself and wrapped him in a tight hug.

When he started groaning she quickly let go, afraid what happened and he started coughing as he said "You're... You're Strength stat is also brought over it seems...". They both laughed for a bit and marveled about how she had all her equipment and how powerful they were. Then he showed her how to do what she had been dying to ask about.

With shaking hands she slowly materialized the two familiar items... She shielded her eyes at the suddenly appearing bright lights above her. But as she started peeking through her fingers, she noticed two small shapes forming... After half a minute, but what felt like an eternity as she gazed in amazement, two small dragons, cat sized came flying down. One blue... Amayori.. and one red, her brother Takiguri... They looked around confused but then settled on her, standing below them.

They immediately dove down towards her, full of enthusiasm. At that point, Alice was just glad they were small and not at their full sizes... Ouch! She looked up at Kirito with teary eyes and a grateful smile while she said "Thank you... Thank you really, so much..". He just smiled and nervously rubbed the back of his neck, saying it was nothing and that he "..just asked Koujiro-san and Higa-san to negotiate for it with the company that runs ALO. They apparently were quite happy about the promotional value of the first true AI to play their game...".

She thought for a split second about how that might cause problems down the line, but almost immediately returned to being happy as her Dragons licked her face.

As they discussed her equipment and abilities for a bit they were both startled when a young girl's voice rung out "DAADDDYYYY!" as his adopted AI daughter Yui slammed into him in her Human form. He was a little dazed, but soon picked her up and swung her around "YUUUUIIIII!".

She giggled and beamed at him and then stopped and curiously stared at Alice with a tilted head. "Alice-san? You're here with daddy?" she asked in her trademark, puppy eyed, innocent girl voice.

Right when Kirito was about ready to steel himself and reply... something. He froze when two very familiar voices shouted "Kirito?". He turned around slowly and smiled awkwardly as he rubbed the back of his neck. Staring at the pink haired Lisbeth and his Undine girlfriend, Asuna, looking at him with raised eyebrows upon seeing Alice standing there.

It was silent for a moment, but then Liz shot towards Alice. Alice had to visibly steel herself at the speed of the flying blacksmith but was stunned by the following barrage of compliments at her armour and a series of questions and who in the hell had forged it.

While Kirito saw Liz relief some of the tension and barraging a helpless Alice with gear-related questions, he chuckled as she did her best to echo back at Liz what he just told her. Not fully understanding what it all meant. Then Asuna cleared her throat quietly, so only he could hear it and asked with an annoyed voice "So... Kazuto".

He immediately swallowed, noticing she used his real name instead of the affectionate Kirito-kun... Before she started barraging him in a whispered voice "How come you just tell me you have plans and then ignore me all night and day and then I find you here in ALO with Alice of all people?!".

He needed a few moments, but then cleared his throat a bit and told her the first thing that came to mind "Uhm.. Well, Koujiro-san said she was concerned about A-Alice... That she was pushing herself too hard and.. eh.. well she asked if I could convince her to take a day off and relax.. So yeah I... I'm just being there for a friend".

He followed it up with his best confident smile. She stared at him for a few moments, but then had seemed to deem it believable enough, before now too with a smile greeting Alice. After explaining Alice had felt left out at dinner they agreed they should go eat something.

Alice felt a slight tinge in her chest when she realized Asuna, Yui and Lisbeth, or Liz would probably join on her date... eh Dinner! Dinner with Kirito-kun... She sighed quietly but kept smiling her best, friendly smile. She had been a bit relieved when the girls admitted they had already just eaten and insisted they go without them, but did her best not to show it. As the entire time Asuna was shooting warning glances towards Kirito... Eventually they said their awkward goodbyes and the two of them silently made their way to a restaurant in the nearby town of Corral.

* * *

After maybe fifteen minutes of sitting at their table with a large variety of local delicacies - all picked out by Kirito who told her pretty much everything was amazing - they were happily laughing like old friends and sharing all their various dishes. Kirito had cautiously watched her try a few of his less spicy dishes, but after being happily surprised that she really liked the heat, they eventually ordered a string of dishes with increasing spiciness...

Fifteen minutes later, they had each eaten five spicy dishes. When they started Kirito had, despite her enthusiasm, felt pretty confident in his ability to win. By the fourth dish, however, he was starting to get nervous - seeing how they both only coughed up a little bit of smoke... He had expected his newcomer friend to cop out after the third, but now they were both staring at each other. Keeping in their inevitable explosions after that final pepper...

Alice was the first to literally spew fire, being only a second later followed up by Kirito's own spout of flames. A few moments passed, as they stared at each other, gasping for air. But then Kirito raised his arms and while coughing loudly he managed to shout "VICTORYYYYY!". Alice then joined him through her coughs with an annoyed "GAAAH I WAS SO CLOSE".

Then the two of them froze and looked around. Staring at them, like deer looking up into a car's headlight, were around a dozen other pairs of players. The NPC innkeep meanwhile just shouted a pre-programmed "Keep it down or take it outside!".

As they left not long after that awkward moment, they were now silently making their way back to the cabin. Eventually, Kirito stopped. He shared a knowing glance with Alice and the two of them unsheathed their weapons. Kirito had decided to wield his most precious possession: the holy sword Excalibur.

Alice gasped and stared for a bit at the regal Longsword that was even bigger than her own ornate sword. After a moment of admiration she steeled herself and shouted loudly, but in a confident voice "Only cowards lie in hiding!".

The two of them had grinned when a group of twelve Player Killers had come out of the nearby treeline. Their leader had started spouting "Well then... Good on you for spotting us. Now, if you would be so kind as to hand over your glittery swords?". After his men started laughing, Kirito and Alice had shared a glance, smiled, and nodded.

It took them an all of two minutes, with their maxed out skills and high levels, to dispatch of the two horrified parties of players. When they arrived back at the Log Cabin, where they could log out safely, the gave each other a last smile before both pressing the log out button.

When the both of them looked at each other back in Kazuto's room, they were a little embarrassed. They had both forgotten they were actually together in real life as well. And to his shock, Kazuto realized it was already 1AM! Carefully saying this to Alice, her eyes opened wide in shock and she immediately got up. "I... I eh I should go... Oh by Solus, the guards outside must have been waiting all this time...".

Kazuto agreed and they quickly made their way down. To his relief he noted that Sugu must have already gone to bed. As she put her shoes and coat back on and they stared at each other awkwardly for a moment, Kazuto stuttered "I... I'll walk you to your car". She nodded at him with a blush and a smile and led him outside. As they approached the awaiting car, a window rolled down and an unfamiliar face stared at them.

He was clearly wearing the same uniform, but it was a different guard... "Is there a problem, Alice-san, Kirigaya-san?" he asked with a nervous look. The both of them were a bit stunned but then Alice stuttered "Eh.. No, not at all we just thought that it was getting late.. A-and I should probably get back to RATH".

The middle-aged man gave them a confused expression and then went on to carefully ask "We... We were informed by Koujiro-san that you would be spending the night at the Kirigaya-residence? That's why we relieved our colleagues for the night shift...". He strengthened his words by carefully waving at the different car and men around him. Alice almost immediately asked "I.. I am?".

First directed at the guard, who then sheepishly shrugged and said "Well... I suppose that is up to you and Kirigaya-san". At the embarrassed, but somehow hopeful look he got from the blonde girl, he too had started blushing as he eventually stuttered "Ehh.. Eh, if-if you like? I suppose we have a g-guest bedroom?".

As Alice had no sleepwear with her and neither of them really felt like waking Sugu to ask her for a spare set of pajamas... Kazuto nervously gave her one of his oversized shirts, which she gratefully, if a bit shamefully accepted before they said their awkward goodbyes and each retreated to their respective rooms.

As Kazuto fell back on his bed he smiled as he absentmindedly stared at the ceiling. Reliving his day with Alice in his mind. He felt a bit odd, realizing he hadn't truly felt this happy since waking up from the Underworld... Then his smile faltered as his mind went to Asuna. He immediately felt guilty. He had been pushing her away since after the first week...

She had clearly been trying her best to stay supportive of him, but he could see her frustration shine through more and more often. And he realized it wasn't undeserved. He just... didn't know what to do anymore. He was still happy when he saw her, but it just felt like... Like that was so long ago. He had lived an extra four years. Growing up, forging friendships, fighting battles...

* * *

Asuna had always been the more mature and serious of the two. Now she was lying in her bed. Eyes red from the tears she had shed after having logged out from ALO... He ignored her all day and night, and then she had found him with Alice... And apparently they had been spending the whole day together. She had checked her friend list every so often with Liz and Yui, checking to see if he had come online yet.

So she knew they only logged in shortly before they arrived back home. So then... Had she been at his house all day...? She had realized Kirito-kun had been distant lately... And he seemed a lot less carefree. While he still smiled widely and made jokes, he was less... Cheerful. And yet it didn't seem like he was really sad or distracted... He just seemed more... mature? Older. She had to often remind herself that he had spent far longer in that game than she had... In what for her had been several days... Maybe they had.. grown apart, without her even getting a chance to realize it?

* * *

The next morning her onii-chan and Alice-san both carefully stuck their heads out of their respective doors as Sugu loudly screamed at his door to wake up for breakfast. Sugu froze as she saw Alice come out of the guest room wearing what looked like one of her brothers large shirts. For a moment she was stunned, not just by her presence but by her undeniable beauty. It was almost unfair that she had received a body designed by artists... She had even felt more jealous when her brother had casually remarked the other day that she looked exactly as she had in Underworld. Just unfair... Still, eventually she recovered from the shock and feigned a calm voice as she said good morning to Alice and invited her to breakfast as well.

Moments after Sugu had left for school, Kazuto's cellphone rang. Without looking, glad to have a distraction from once again awkwardly being alone with Alice, he answered and quickly said his name. "Aaaah, Kazuto-san, I was glad to hear that Alice-san extended her vacation!". He could hear a clearly teasing tone to her voice and Alice eyed him cautiously as he blushed and stuttered for a bit, before calming himself and carefully asking "Ah yes.. Koujiro-san. In any case, why are you calling...? Especially this early?".

She chuckled a bit at his tone, but then calmly stated "Well, I thought since this is the first time in nearly three months that Alice has actually agreed to take a break... I could offer the both of you something". Kazuto's interested was piqued, but he was cautious too as he slowly said "What did you have in mind...?".

It took a few moments for the idea to be processed after Koujiro explained it. A three day trip at a hotel in the mountains outside of Kyoto where Alice could walk outside and see what the world had to offer without needing to be surrounded by a cordon of bodyguards... But he would need to be by her side to keep an eye on her as well.

After Alice had turned impatient and asked him "Kirito-kun, hello? What is it?". He hesitantly repeated the offer. Her eyes widened, but then seemed to glimmer a little as a small smile formed on the blonde girl's face. He could clearly see her blushing as she looked a little to the side and nervously asked "I... I would.. I would like being outside the city..." but then she quickly added "Only if.. if that works for you, of course.. I mean you have your own life".

He could see that Alice genuinely had hoped to be allowed outside a bit more freely and the thought of being in the mountains away from the city seemed to light a spark in her eyes. Still, he could see how it seemed to be pretty difficult for her to openly admit she needed his help to do it...

He sighed and without replying to Alice chuckled as he said into the phone with a resigned smile "Alright, we'll do it". He was surprised when Alice suddenly lept forward and with her face stuffed up to his chest said "Thanks Kirito-kun... really!". He chuckled a bit awkwardly as he hugged her back with one arm.

As Koujiro made arrangements for them to leave the next day, she stated Alice may as well stay over at his house another night, which the two of them blushingly and hesitantly agreed to after some discussion with Koujiro - who persisted that it would be easier as they wouldn't need to cross the busy city center the next morning to pick him up.

Suddenly finding themselves with a whole new day to fill in the Kirigaya-residence, they stared awkwardly at each other for a while, until Kazuto realized that he should really tell Asuna about this... He excused himself for a moment, explaining that and Alice seemed to give him a concerned look, as if she now too realized his girlfriend would probably not like this.

Seeing her look turn from excitement to sadness, he immediately stuttered "Don't worry, I'll just explain and... I'm sure she'll be fine with it, really". It seemed to calm her down, a little, as she shot him an appreciative smile and gesturing for him to get going.

* * *

Asuna was already online and waiting for him in their Log Cabin in LAO, so he put on his trusty NerveGear, and logged in. He found her sitting, with her arms crossed, glaring at him intently. "So, how was your date with Alice?" she asked sarcastically. He looked down a little as he eventually sighed and said "It wasn't a date, Asuna. I just... She's a good friend and I.. We have just been through a lot, that's all, really".

He had meant what he said, but afterwards he started to doubt his own conviction a little. Did he really only see her as a friend? Asuna seemed to notice his hesitation near the end and scoffed, before continuing in a raised voice "You've been distant ever since you came back, and even more since yesterday... You're just so different. Is it Alice? Really? I mean... I mean you only had a few days of memories with her at most!". She was almost incoherently shouting all of this at him and he flinched a bit. It took him a few seconds to figure out how to tell her that he had a lot more than that...

He eventually sighed and in a soft voice began telling her "When... When the Blue Rose Sword with the remains of Eugeo helped me defeat Vector... Erh, Miller I suppose, he... He showed me the memories of my first trip to the Underworld...". She blinked at him a few times "You mean that first test dive? That was only a few days too right?" she asked impatiently.

He slowly shook his head "no... I.. He gave me back... ten years worth of memories... Growing up with Eugeo and Alice as my best friends, being born on the same die". Glancing up and down again upon seeing her shocked and hurt expression he quietly kept speaking. "I... And, since yesterday, I... I've been getting flashes of memories while I was comatose, and of her... Looking after me".

It stayed silent for minutes, until Asuna, with a raspy voice but clear intent in it said "Look at me". Almost immediately, due to the shock, he shot his eyes up to meet hers. Tears were streaming out of them, but he only saw a cold... determination as he glanced in those normally warm eyes. He felt a tinge of sadness as he realized _he_ caused that. But it was nothing to the pain he felt when she followed up by asking him "Do... Do you still love me, kirito-kun?" in the most fragile voice he had ever heard her use.

He stared into her eyes for a few seconds before quietly, but calmly saying "I... I do.. But for me it's been almost four years, Asuna. I lived a life there... I... I changed, I guess. And it's been getting more and more difficult returning to... the version of myself I was before all that... The version you fell in love with". She stared at his eyes intently, as if measuring what he said and then with a soft voice asked "And Alice...?".

He honestly didn't know what to say. He just stared back at her and stopped. No answer could pass his lips. Eventually she turned around and said calmly "I... I don't think this is still working, Kazuto... I...". Near the end her calm demeanor faltered and she started sobbing as she fell to her knees.

His heart broke, seeing Asuna like that. But as he made his way over to... To just say anything to try and calm her down. He couldn't stand being the cause for her being like this. But before he reached her, she had quickly opened her player menu and said in a broken, but sincere voice "I... I hope you'll be happy... Kirito-kun, truly". After which she logged out in the familiar flash of light.

Kirito needed a few moments and shakingly took place on the couch in their cabin. _Did he just... Break up with Asuna?_ At that point he heard a soft voice coming from his side, Yui standing there with tears streaming from her face as she sobbed "Daddy... Are you... Are you and mommy breaking up?". His heart broke again, but he forced himself to at least say something, for her sake "I... I don't know, honey... I.. I think so".

Having received that confirmation. Yui seemed to stiffen a little, but then slowly started to calm down. She was still upset, but she carefully nodded at him and softly said "I... I already noticed a change... In your emotional output.. You.. You didn't enjoy spending as much time with mommy anymore.. And yesterday with Alice you were suddenly really happy again!".

As Yui pointed it out so plainly for him, with the full knowledge of her advanced AI and the innocence of a ten year old girl, he couldn't help but feel ashamed as he looked to the ground. After a few moments, however, his daughter hugged him and whispered "It's alright daddy, I understand... You changed. You're older after Underworld. And it's been a long time for you since you saw us...".

Yui being an Emotional Support AI originally, still seemed to always know what to say to him. As he almost chuckled to himself over that realization, he suddenly noticed Yui was shaking a little bit and he realized what that statement included. _since you saw us..._ He quickly pulled her up on his knee and gave her a firm hug, stroking her back and brushing her hair with his hands.

"I still love the both of you, Yui... But with Asuna it just feels... different? I'm still not really sure myself what it is, but it just all feels like a distant memory... But you, Yui, you I loved more than ever when I saw you again... You can feel that, right?". He added that last part with a hopeful look.

She looked at his face for a moment, tears covering her cheeks, but after what seemed like three seconds, she immediately brightened up and beamed her innocent smile at him "You're right daddy, it doesn't even fit on the scale of love!". She followed it up by cheekily giggling. He couldn't help but smile at how fast Yui accepted information due to her processing speed being significantly higher than that of the Human brain...

They talked for a little bit over some quickly prepared tea, until he realized Alice was waiting for him... Then he told Yui that he would probably be playing with Alice for a bit later in ALO "Would you want to come with us Yui?" he really did ask to cheer his daughter up, but she just smiled and said she was going on a quest for a rare ingot with Liz and Sinon.

Noticing he seemed worried that they would be online as well, Yui just said comfortingly "Don't worry daddy, I'll just tell them it wouldn't be a good time". He smiled at her and teasingly said "Thanks Yui, although it sometimes feels more like you're my parent, instead of the other way around". She just giggled at him . They gave each other another long hug, before Kirito logged out again.

* * *

As he rubbed his fuzzy eyes and opened them after taking off the helmet, he was a bit startled to find Alice looking at him with a worried stare from his desk chair. "It's been forty-five minutes Kirito-kun..." she said a bit annoyed, but clearly reading from his expression that something happened.

He sighed and looked down at the floor as he quietly said "I think... I think I just broke up with Asuna... Or she with me.. Or both.. I don't know..". The impact of his chat with Asuna started returning, Yui's comforting peptalk starting to wear off. To his surprise, a few moments after he started to feel tears well up in the corners of his eyes...

Alice had taken a seat next to him on the bed and wrapped him in a warm hug. As she pulled his head in to rest on her shoulder and calmly rubbed circles on his back, she said "It's going to be alright...". He started sobbing at this point, completely unable to keep up his struggle to hold on to some scrap of formality, and just seeking comfort with his friend.

After a five minutes of quiet hugging and comforting, Alice softly asked him if there's anything specific he had in mind for the day? He took a few moments to sort through his thoughts... But then he realized what the next undefeated boss was in New Aincrad... He steeled himself and with a confident voice that seemed to surprise himself more than it did Alice, he said "How about we take down a boss?".

Alice was a little surprised at the sudden determination Kirito-kun showed... But then she realized something, he had told her what the next boss would be. And the tragic story behind it... The 74th floor... Carefully she asked "Isn't the next bos... Gleam Eyes?". To her further surprise he just solemnly nodded and muttered quietly "Seems only right... Ending it where it really started...". She chose not to ask any further, as he really did seem to need this...

And she had to admit, she was itching to test out her equipment for what its worth against a strong opponent... And from the stories he had told her, this was certainly a strong beast. The previous day they had discovered, to Kirito-kun's great shock, that the company behind ALO had even created a Unique Skill for her, which gave some of her Integrity Knight techniques Sword Skill effects, to replace the lost ability of her sword to turn into a storm of razor-sharp petals...

As such, they found themselves in front of the 74th Floor Boss Doors only an hour later, having cleared their way through the labyrinth with trained speed and precision. They had slipped into a fully synchronous switching style. Alice with her Fragrant Olive Longsword releasing heavy, stunning strikes, and even wide Skills designed to immobilize or stagger multiple opponents at once, and Kirito-kun dodging in dexterously to deal Sword Skill after Sword Skill at the distracted monsters.

There turned out to be more people sharing their idea to clear out the labyrinth in preparation of a planned Boss Raid the next day, but while the pair shot past everyone, moving further and further up the Labyrinth... The first few parties happily tagged along, joining in the experience gain by finishing off the monsters on the fringes of the main fight. But by the time they had reached the Boss Doors, they were now followed by an audience of spectators who had been marveling at their teamwork and ease with the tough monsters. As well as both of their gleaming swords...

He was almost immediately recognized as Kirito, the Black Swordsman, the hero who cleared SAO... While Alice wasn't directly recognized as the wonder AI because of her blue hair and Caith Sith cat ears... Her Unique Sword and Skills, however, quickly started to wow them. As well as her incredible, equally Unique armour - paired with her apparent skill in using them. She was an unknown, at a skill level that was clearly showed to be equal to the most famous player of the game...

They shared a last glance and a resolute nod as they, to the shock of the crowd, walked into the boss room together. Just under an hour later, the last of Gleam Eye's health bars shattered. The second time of ending the virtual life of the monster that slaughtered dozens of players... Kirito felt himself being unable to move. He was just standing in the position he pulled himself up to. Heaving from the exhaustion. He heard Alice's clinking footsteps approaching and felt her stop to next to him. As he looked over at her worried eyes, he now for the first time noticed he had been crying. She pulled him into a silent hug and he immediately returned it.

After they had stood there for a while, they broke apart again, Kirito happily smiling at the girl as he wiped away his tears, which she returned with her own intoxicatingly, beautiful smile. He couldn't help but look at her happily swinging tail for a moment and chuckle, before he looked past her for the first time now and noticed around... sixty or so players, wide eyed and with gaping mouths standing at the boss door.

Most of them holding up recording crystals... Oh crap... Everyone is going to see this entire fight... And he thought to himself nervously... _His long hug with Alice_. As Alice too turned around to face the audience she had forgotten, they seemed to be pulled from their shock and came rushing towards them. Congratulating them and shouting praises. Some asking them questions. They were flustered for a while, until Kirito suddenly noticed a familiar face.

* * *

As he walked up from the back of the audience with a confident stride and a warm smile on his face, the gathered crowd actually parted for him and silenced, before he calmly turned to Kirito and said "My old friend, Kirito-san! might I ask you a few questions for MMO Today?". Kirito was flustered, but had expected it from his friend, Thinker. The former leader of the Aincrad Liberation Army in SAO and editor of MMO Today, the popular news website about Multiplayer gaming, and the virtual worlds specifically.

Sighing and realizing it would be better for this to spread through a friend anyway... He turned to discuss what they were going to say with Alice a few paces away. Thinker patiently waited, with a confident smile, as if he already knew he had won this exclusive.

"So Kirito-san, as almost all former SAO players know, and most of the non-SAO players as well due to the Full Record of SAO book that was published several months ago, you initially battled and defeated the original Gleam Eyes nearly single-handed using your then discovered Unique Ability... Dual-Wielding. Now we find you here, once more, in New Aincrad this time. Only you're not fighting it alone anymore, nor dual-wielding, only wielding what appears to be... the holy sword of Excalibur".

He chuckled for a moment as Kirito answered stutteringly "Y-You... eh, you have done your research, huh Thinker..? Although i-it wasn't exactly soloing the first time. But yes..." he started his last sentence a little louder so everyone gathered could clearly hear him "I am Kirito and this is my good friend, Alice".

The man gave him another chuckle and a smile before he, a bit more seriously added "Then would you perhaps fill in the gaps for me here... Who is your new... Partner? Her armour, her mysterious weapon... And she fights with such ease that she has to be a veteran player... And yet nobody here seems to know her?".

Kirito gestured for Alice to say what they agreed and she stepped up confidently, the many press conferences having steeled her to the point where a few players with recording crystals meant nothing to her "Greetings players of Alfheim Online! I am in fact... Alice, as my good friend Kirito-kun said, but you may recognize me by my full name... Integrity Knight Alice Synthesis Thirty. It is nice to meet you!".

After a bow, the entire audience was stunned for a moment, before Thinker, smelling the exclusive of a lifetime, hastily asked "So, Alice-san, and I don't mean this to offend you in any way, but I'm just trying to get some facts clear" he started carefully.

Upon seeing Alice give him an encouraging nod, he asked "So you are the... 'AI' visitor from Underworld that we have been seeing on the news... You have decided to become a player of ALO... And you appear to be good friends with the famous Black Swordsman... Is that correct?".

Both Kirito and Alice happily nodded and confirmed his questions, but then Thinker asked Alice with a confident smile "Alice-san, could you tell the readers of MMO Today if you... will be partnering up with Kirito-san in ALO and perhaps other games, from now on?". Kirito froze and noticed that Alice turned around to him with a nervous and somewhat embarrassed look.

He could tell what she was trying to say 'we... didn't really discuss that yet, right?'. They exchanged a wordless exchange, but eventually both of their faces softened into warm smiles. Before Kirito confidently said with a smile "Yes Thinker-san, I think we will".

The man smiled at him and then calmly asked "Then let me ask you this Kirito, the Black Swordsman, one of the most famous names in the MMO community...". He gave him an encouraging smile and nod, as if saying 'this will help' "are you taking an official position on whether you believe Alice should be recognized as a Human being, instead of a program as some claim her to be?".

Alice had been relieved that the interview had gone according to their quick plan, but when Thinker-san asked Kirito-kun to make a formal statement... She couldn't help but get a little restless. She knew from having seen most of his press conferences since SAO, that he wasn't really much of a talker in front of them.

He was always nervous and declined making any definitive statements, to try and keep as low a profile as his celebrity status permitted. She was pleasantly shocked when Kirito didn't even blink, but fiercely confident replied "That goes without saying, Thinker-san. Alice has quickly grown to be one of my closest friends... Not to mention that she has saved my life on occasion... While I have often avoided taking stances in heated topics, I can firmly say I am in full support of Alice being recognized for what she is...".

He paused there for a moment, enjoying the shocked look on Thinker's face, who although having expected his support, didn't expect such a strong one from his usually evasive self. He chuckled and finished "Human". After which the two of them left, happily smiling at each other as they confidently strode up the stairs the the 75th floor.

After they had walked up the stairs to the next floor, Alice checked to make sure they weren't followed and gave her new partner a big hug. She was happy to find he returned it without freezing up this time. As she smiled into his chest, more to hide her blush than anything else, he calmly stroked her back and said with a teasing voice "So... You up to keep going a bit longer? They... They changed this entire floor...". Alice, who realized she could keep going for a while, calmly turned around, but was immediately shocked by the sight in front of her.

See - artstation com / artwork / 1g3oL - for a beautiful piece of artwork that I envision while writing for this floor.

The architecture reminded her a lot of what she had seen of South Centoria, back in Underworld, but she had since learned that that was based on a traditional Japanese building style. Those pagoda temples and simple houses she could see weren't the most stunning of their view, however.

Steep, towering cliff sides, deep canyons and lakes. Thick fir and pine forests dotted the tops of the eroded mountains. Even several floating islands up high in the sky. Next to her Kirito muttered, amazed but dazed all the same "This.. This is beautiful.. But it will be a pain to get around...". Alice was pulled out of her own wonder by his comment and chuckled when she realized something "But imagine flying around here on Amayori and Takiguri...When they're... bigger".

She felt herself frown a little, thinking how they were still so small... But then Kirito tapped her on the shoulder. As she looked at him he had a wide smile on his face and said "Well... In ALO, Dragons reach their full size at level 30.. And judging by... that.. they already leveled up a lot by that Boss Fight". She followed his pointing finger and her mouth fell wide open. She was looking at the two Dragons, but instead of the cat-sized hatchlings she had seen before, they had grown to the size of large wolves...

"But.. How... It took them three years to grow that large!". Kirito just chuckled and sheepishly said "That's the benefit of a game, I suppose? Helping fight high level boss monsters...". She couldn't help but hug him again, as they started to make their way along a cliff path to a village they could see in the distance... She was going to explore a strange new world, with her new partner!


	2. ARC1-CH2: Partners

The day after her unexpected break-up with Kirito-kun, or maybe just... Kirito now... She had been forced to go to school by her mother, stating that she had already lost an extra two months because of that boy and yet another virtual Prison. She had refrained from using her phone, or even the internet for the remainder of the day.

So she was sitting in her classroom, with her face hard as steel, driving any potential visitors away. Assuming nobody could know about their break-up yet... Could they? She hadn't checked her messages this morning... She started to get more and more nervous while people started whispering and glancing at her. Eventually Rika(Liz) and Keiko(Silica) came barging into her classroom, right as their period ended.

She wordlessly let them drag her up to the roof, where they happily concluded they were alone. Rika her death glares had scared off any potential pursuers as well.

As they sat down Asuna just silently stared at the ground, with her knees pulled up to her chest. She realized everyone probably knew. Somehow... Why else..? But then Rika pulled her from her thoughts by carefully asking her "Are you... Are you sad because.. Because of Thinker's article?".

She looked up confused to find worried stares in the eyes of her friends. She just muttered, cold fury starting to rise "Thinker-san wrote... an... article about.. about... About me breaking up with KIRITO-KUN!?". She hadn't even noticed she had started shouting angrily at that point. Both her friends looked perplexed for a few seconds. But then Keiko silently opened up the article on her cellphone and handed it to her with wide eyes.

It took her a few moments to process what it was saying, still seething with rage, but then her face lost all colour as she realized what she had just said... And what this article was _actually_ about... Standing there in a half embrace, widely grinning, were Kirito-kun and Alice, flashing the recording crystal V-signs (for Victory).

The title read: "Black Swordsman and Integrity Knight Alice defeat Gleam Eyes!". She stared at it incredulously and read the remainder of the article about their two person victory over the 74th floor boss... And how she seemed to match him in skill. As well as their statement to being good friends and teaming up from there on out... Not to mention his uncharacteristically passionate support in a... well, widely controversial topic. She felt as if he had stabbed her in the back, again. Not even with a dagger, but with Excalibur itself.

As she started to sob, Rika and Keiko immediately moved in to hug her and comfort her. "I.. I didn't know Asuna... I'm sorry". Keiko silently said to her. Rika just stroked her hair and stayed silent, clearly unable to come up with anything encouraging to say.

* * *

That morning, Suguha had enjoyed an awkward breakfast with her brother and Alice. But she had understood it when they said they didn't realize how late it had gotten and that Koujiro-san had already arranged it like that... She had sighed, but said goodbye to Alice with a hug and a smile, assuming she would be leaving again not much later.

Suffice to say she wasn't expecting it when someone came over to her lunch table and started asking "Kirigaya-san! Does your brother really know Integrity Knight Alice!?". People started looking at them now and it wasn't long before everyone had a certain article opened on their phones and started loudly discussing it.

Suguha was staring at her phone in amazement. Not only was this article dated ten minutes after what it stated was the boss fight (she had to commend Thinker on his skills at locking in an exclusive...), it was only dated fifteen minutes ago... And it was already nearing the end of the school day. How long would Alice be staying...? And what does Asuna think about all this...

After a few confused messages between the members of their friend group, with Klein, Agil, Sinon and pretty much everyone but Kazuto, Asuna, Liz and Silica having responded they had no clue what was going on, Suguha wasn't sure what to think...

But then one short message came from Asuna directly to her "Hey Sugu-chan... Kirito-kun and I... broke up". She was stunned throughout the remainder of the day. She had noticed Kazuto didn't seem all that happy while he was in the hospital, but he had only been home for a day and she hadn't really been able to get a sense of how he was doing... Mostly due to Alice suddenly showing up. _Alice... No.. Is he.. Is THAT why...?_ Suguha had little capacity for retaining any more new information that day, and eventually rushed home to interrogate her brother.

As she closed the door and took of her shoes she carefully shouted "Onii-chan...?". No reply. Hmmm. She walked into the living room and then noticed her brother and Alice, both with their eyes closed, sitting on the couch next to each other. Her brother had his NerveGear on, and Alice had probably uploaded herself to the ALO server. And her head seemed to have 'fallen' to lie on his shoulder...

She instantly realized the article had been true and they were most likely celebrating their incredible two-person Boss Fight somewhere in game. Her curiosity getting the better of her, she ran up to her room and put on her AmuSphere. "Link Start!". She materialized in front of Kirito and Asuna's log cabin. She saw nobody inside, so she opened her friend list. She saw that Kirito and Alice were in a restaurant in Corral. She instantly decided to go over there and ask him what the hell had happened...

In her haste, she didn't notice the names of Klein, Agil, Sinon and Silica all online as well... When she arrived at the restaurant, she was almost immediately joined by the flying and running figures of the aforementioned members of their friend group.

They all shared slight chuckles over all of them having had the same idea without talking it through. They were clearly all worried, though. Remembering why they came here... They all turned their heads to look at the restaurant window and... To their utter shock... Kirito and Alice were loudly laughing and enjoying a feast.

Suguha carefully asked the other stunned players "Does he... Does he even know...?". As all of them thought about that for a few seconds, they were suddenly startled by a _poof_ as pixie-Yui appeared with a wry smile on her face "Yes... daddy does know...". They all stared at her in amazement for a moment before Silica almost accusingly asked her "But... But Yui-chan, why is he so happy?".

Yui seemed to scratch her chin for a bit, but then smiled a little again and said "Well, I suppose as daddy's friends you should know...". As she paused for a moment, seemingly to gather her words, the others were staring at her intensely. "Daddy has... changed in Underworld... He is... Different now. Not worse, or better! But just different...".

Agil somehow having remained calm, asked her "Yui-chan, what are you trying to say?". Yui seemed to sigh a little, but then said "Just consider... That what for us was two months, and for mommy only really three days... Was _two and a half years_ for daddy! And now he's suddenly back in his life that... That is really only just a distant memory for him. And he even has a year and a half worth of memories on top of what mommy remembers from after the war...".

The others seemed to be a bit shocked at first, but solemnly agreed that it made sense... They should maybe even have expected it, if they were being honest. They well realized how much SAO had aged them mentally, compared to their actual two years there... But with this, he had actually spent four years in two days...

Eventually, they decided to confront them anyway, at least to show that they regretfully understood his decision. As they came in the first thing they heard was Alice loudly laughing and in between her laughs burst out "And then... And then when Amayori and Takiguri started clawing at all of his eyes and those adorable fire bre-".

They noticed she froze in place upon seeing the group, immediately blushing a bit and stuttering incoherent words. Kirito slowly turned around and just looked down at the floor. Clearly expecting some sort of scolding.

Klein just stepped forward after a few moments and pulled the Black Swordsman up like a ragdoll, before pulling him into a tight hug. "K-Klein!?" Kirito stuttered, shocked. Klein just chuckled "I'm sorry young man... We... I didn't really stop to think that you might have changed after so long in Underworld...".

Noticing how Kirito seemed to close up, he immediately hurriedly added "But I'm not saying that's a bad thing, honest! Everyone changes as they get older, right?". He gave Kirito his signature, encouraging grin. Starkly contrasting with his samurai/pirate get up and vibe. Kirito couldn't help but chuckle at the consistency of his friend's antics "Everyone but you Klein... But I'm glad, if you changed we'd all just fall apart on the spot".

Klein seemed to beam at him and a tad embarrassed rubbed the back of his chin and waved it away "Nah, it's nothing! That's what friends are for". The others seemed to echo much the same sentiment, although Silica seemed a lot more reserved than he had expected from the little girl that used to so clearly idolize him before all this...

Agil gave him a big hug as well, before saying with a serious voice "Never mind how old you are mentally, though, you're still only getting tea at my bar until you're physically eighteen". He couldn't help but laugh a little at the antics of the oldest member of their friend group.

* * *

His heart just broke a little again, when he saw Silica's sadness and he took her over to the side for a bit. "Hey Silica... I.. I'm sorry..". He couldn't bare staring into the little girl's adorable eyes, wet with small tears. Then she asked in her signature, honest to god innocent weeping voice "So... Are we... Are we still friends or.. or is that also just a memory now?".

Even though she was much older at this point, all he could see was that innocent, thirteen year old girl he found in the woods, crying over Pina's death... He immediately hugged her tightly and said "Hey... Calm down Silica-chan. Of course we're still friends! And... part of me will always love Asuna too... but.. I just feel, I feel like I had already left it behind me after all that time... And now... Now I really have, it feels like a weight was lifted..".

He paused for a bit, thinking about his words, but Silica stopped him by carefully speaking up "So... We can still meet up in ALO and.. and at school and Dicey's..?" (Dicey being Agil's cafe in the real world, their regular meeting spot). Kirito looked a bit confused for a moment, but then smiled and said "Of course Silica-chan! I couldn't live without seeing you every few days! You're like a second sister to me...".

It had been an unspoken thing for a while now, even if Silica always secretly had been in love with the older boy, she knew it would never work out. And she had already started seeing him as an older brother instead, quite some time ago. But never had either of them really said it so openly.

She was stunned for a moment, but then smiled brightly at his confession and warmly hugged him back. She had a brother! Although now she would be just like leafa-san... In love with her brother/not-brother. She sighed quietly as she felt her face redden. The two of them slowly started to realize the rest of the people present were awe'ing at them and finding it all adorable. They coughed a bit as they got up again, with red faces, but then Kirito quickly joked "Same goes for.. All of you really. Especially you Klein".

The samurai seemed to beam brightly at his praise, but soured when he heard Kirito's teasing follow-up "Especially you Klein... You're a close third sister following after Silica-chan here". Klein stared at his friend's wide grin, before he lost it "WHY YOU...!?". With Agil having to firmly hold him in place with one hand to prevent him from charging the snickering Kirito and Silica.

* * *

The next day, after having an awkward talk with first Suguha and then his aunt/mother Midori over the phone, they both seemed to be somewhat supportive of him after his explanations, which really helped. Midori even commended him for being such a good friend to Alice, showing her the world a bit and pulling her out of her stressful cycle.

She likened it to her own busy travel plan and how she regrets she won't be home until he is already on his way to their hotel in the mountains, not having seen him since he came home from the hospital. But he reassured her that they would only be staying for two nights and would be getting back late on the third day. She wanted to give him some form of allowance as well, but he awkwardly replied he actually made... quite a lot of money from the whole 200 years in Underworld thing... To further ensure he would keep quiet about what happened there, and buying off his right to any future lawsuits in what could possibly be the wearing out of his 'soul', he had been paid a fortune.

To their surprise, they were picked up by a second car, with more space in the back for their five hour car ride to the mountain hotel, almost a small limousine they shared with just the two of them. It felt as if they were on a business trip, they awkwardly joked. After an hour or so, they had already returned to their loud joking and talked about this or that.

Kirito mostly explaining or narrating things she could see from behind the happily noticed that there wasn't a trace left of her initial gloomy stare from the first day. She was staring at everything with wide eyes and seemed to be genuinely excited for their trip. Eventually, they got a little drowsy, having again played ALO till late into the night.

Alice fell asleep a little earlier than him and while he was nodding away himself, he was suddenly wide awake, as her head landed on his shoulder and snuggled up to his neck a bit. Probably asleep... Recovering from his shock, he realized... It actually felt kind of... right? So he carefully put his arm around her and pulled her in a bit closer, before closing his own eyes as well.

Alice had pretended to fall asleep, just so she could shamelessly enjoy cuddling up to Kirito. But when he hugged her closer she had to give it all of her concentration to not freeze up or yelp and give away her conscious condition. Luckily, he didn't seem to notice. She quickly followed as she happily noted he fell asleep almost instantly. Both falling asleep cuddled together, big smiles on their faces...

Three hours later, the glass window between them and the driver's seat lowered, startling them awake. He calmly informed them they had arrived and that their keys were being procured. They awkwardly stared at the driver, who without further word closed the window again, before staring at each other and giggling. Kazuto because of Alice's considerable amount of drool that pooled up on his shoulder, and Alice because of how funny his hair looked. Eventually, they learned that the security guards would be monitoring her condition and GPS position at all times, but that they would otherwise stay gathered at the hotel itself.

To their surprise, and the guards their annoyance, they had been instructed to let them explore the town the hotel was in, as well as the surrounding trails in the woods without escort. But, they did hand them both a convenient panic button and an extendable baton in case they were recognized and harassed for any reason. The both of them realizing they were essentially celebrities, happily accepted the precautions.

After Kazuto had the realization that Alice had only ever had that one blue sundress and several work uniforms to wear - he hatched a plan to make sure she enjoyed their little holiday to the fullest, even if it would be hell for him... They quickly made their way into the small town, nodding to their guards stationed outside. They casually walked through the town, Alice asking him a couple of questions about the architecture and the various types of shops and market stalls. It was a bright and sunny day, being mid august and all - so he just enjoyed the weather and his friend's happiness as he let her lead him from market stall to market stall, eventually stopping to longingly stare at some food vendors.

He noticed her longing stare and the realization that she wasn't _fully_ Human in this world starting to take over again. So he put his arm around her and gave her a soft hug from the side as he said "Don't worry... Higa-san says they should have taste receptors within the first year, then I'll take you to _all _kinds of restaurants!".

She had seemed immediately brightened up by that prospect at first, but then she calmed down a bit and with a frown said "Yeah.. that would be really nice Kirito-kun... But I won't always have this much time... I think it will really only get busier and with you going to university next year... I just..".

When he noticed the tears starting to form again, and her silently starting to sob a little, he pulled her in a little tighter and said all he could come up with "Well... At least we can enjoy this trip right? And I'm sure we'll have plenty more". She smiled up at him. A soft "Thanks.." following. Then he grinned widely and said "Aaand, I thought of another way to help you feel like you fit in a bit more...". A little taken aback by his enthusiasm, Alice reluctantly let him drag here in between the various shopping people and stopping after five minutes in front of a large store. A large _clothing_ store...

She blinked a few times and then a little shamefully said "Uhm... I eh do technically earn your currency at RATH, but since I haven't needed it... I don't have any way to access it yet...". She awkwardly glanced up from the floor she had been very interested in for a few seconds, only to find Kirito giving her a loving smile as he warmly said with an excited glimmer running through his eyes "They actually paid me a... well, a small fortune for my troubles with the SoulTranslator...".

She stared at him with wide eyes and her mouth hanging ajar. But then she quickly steeled herself and starting objecting, she couldn't let him pay for her clothing! But he wouldn't hear of it and just said "Without you keeping me alive during that fight and not to mention those six months... I.. I wouldn't even have been here to receive it at all! So really, the least I could do is help you settle in in this world". He finished with a chuckle and a blush on his face.

The first ten minutes inside the clothing store consisted of Alice reluctantly browsing through the various clothing pieces for sale. Even if he insisted, she didn't feel comfortable 'going shopping' with his money. When he noticed, he awkwardly started suggesting items. She had to admit that he at least had some taste when it came to clothing... So it turned out too difficult to object to everything he pointed out. Eventually, after an hour inside the clothing store, Alice was brightly smiling while holding two bags filled with new pieces of clothing. Kirito following behind her, grinning, holding another two as he teasingly said "See, all girls like shopping...".

He had needed to point things out for her at first, to get her over her initial objections, but it wasn't long until she was happily browsing and running in and out of the changing rooms. He wasn't even really sure what exactly was in those bags. She pouted at him, but couldn't help but break out into giggling. She moved in to give him a hug, but at the last second she stoop up on the tips of her toes and quickly pecked him on the cheek "Thanks for.. Everything, Kirito-kun...".

Kirito was glad to see that Alice was humming and strolling around happily by his side. When she suddenly pecked him on the cheek, he froze up, but he soon chuckled nervously and said "Of course, that's what friends are for Alice". She gave him a warm smile and he couldn't help but blush at the sight of the blonde girl with her deep blue eyes smiling at him. To his relief, she also seemed to start blushing now and nervously looked away as they continued on their way through the small town. Thanks to his extensive web searches into tourist attractions at this town, he knew exactly where to bring his friend next.

* * *

Alice was marveling at the different kinds of armour and weaponry they displayed in this museum. Apparently, a warrior tribe known as 'samurai' used to live here. And while she could see hints of Underworld, it was very different. She had immediately wanted to pick one of the 'katana' out of their display and start a few practice swings to test their weight - but as Kirito quickly pointed out, you weren't supposed to touch display items... Quickly putting it back she nervously looked around to see if anyone noticed.

One older man seemed to be giving her an appraising look. As she awkwardly smiled at him, hoping to defuse the situation, he came their way. As he approached he bowed and politely asked "Good day there you two, would I be right to assume you are interested in fighting with the katana?".

By the time the two returned to their hotel, they were exhausted. Kirito was still a little dazed about his evening. Alice had pulled an old katana out of a display, and next they knew they were invited for a practice session at the adjoining dojo. It was part of the museum to teach basic swings with practice katanas, and so they had a small audience of museum goers watching them as they took their places. The instructor had been very impressed by how fluidly they performed all the basic stances and strikes he showed them.

Both of them had awkwardly chuckled and said they had some experience with swordfighting. The older teacher had immediately suggested they perform a sparring match. At first they had tried to get out of it, but the small audience was cheering as well. Then Alice argued in a quiet voice "well... Kirito-kun, at least we have protective gear, so nobody will recognize us?". From her tone he could tell that she was just dying to fight him.

By the time they left the dojo, they had fought five bouts, quickly giving up the basic katana moves the teacher had showed them and fighting each other with their own techniques. He wasn't sure when he lost himself to the fight again, but by the time they were done the audience had been shell-shocked. The teacher at the dojo bowed to them and nervously said they were welcome to give another show whenever they liked, glancing at the door. At that point they noticed the audience at the museum had doubled and they made a hasty exit. Them not being recognized here was a big part of why they were allowed to come after all...

* * *

That night they were sitting on the rooftop terrace of their hotel. "Your night sky is very different from the one of Underworld" the blonde haired girl mused next to him. "It's just a shame you can't see all of this from the city" he replied with a sigh. It was a cloudless night and there was no visible light pollution from the small mountain town they were visiting.

As they gazed at the open sky, they both unconsciously moved a little closer on the bench they were sitting on. They stared up in silence, just taking in the sight, deep in their own thoughts. He was pulled from them when he heard Alice's calm and silent voice "It's nice to be able to enjoy your world like I... like I belong here".

He needed a few moments, but then carefully put his arm around her. She froze up a little, but then seemed to relax and lean into his side, so he let out a silent sigh of relief. Then he carefully said "Alice... I know not everyone has been welcoming to you and the idea of you being Human... But you are and you _do _belong here".

He could feel her head shift to look up at him, but he kept staring at the stars above, realizing that he would be lost if he looked into those blue eyes again. "I... I've been talking to Koujiro-san about... About my plans for the future. Going to university...".

He felt Alice freeze up a little again, as he heard a careful voice quietly ask him "Yes... Suguha-san said that you... you were planning to attend an academy on a different continent?". He carefully nodded and said "I was.. Yes... But Koujiro-san made me an offer... And I have been thinking about it for a few weeks now...".

He heard Alice sigh impatiently and say "Well, Kirito-kun, what is the offer?". He couldn't help but chuckle and pull her a little closer as he started "Well... Knight-_chan, _their organization wants to give me a scholarship at the Technical Institute of... Tokyo".

He now glanced down at the girl in his arms and she gave him a shocked look. After a few moments she started muttering "So... So we can still meet in the real world...?". He blushed a little as he quietly continued "Of course... And.. Eh.. It will be a part-time education, as I will be interning at RATH the entire time... Working with the MRAS under Koujiro-san herself... with.. eh.. well, you. I-if you'd like that, that is?".

He expectantly looked into the girl's eyes, hoping to see she'd be happy with the idea of them working together, when he started to notice tears forming in her eyes. _The detail they put into them..._ He shook away the appreciation for robotics when she buried her face against his chest and hugged him tightly again. "You... You really meant it, didn't you? T-That you would fight for me?".

He was still a little stunned, but eventually managed to clear his throat and say "I meant.. Everything I said, Alice". After a few moments of silence he barely registered that he kept talking, as the words slowly came out of his mouth "When... When I came back.. from Underworld.. I realized I was different, older. And.. You helped me realize that.. that was okay. That I didn't need to.. force myself to undo that change..".

He gently stroked her back as they stayed in their embrace. Eventually he was going to let go again, but she stopped him and said quietly "Just... just hold me, for a little while.. Okay?". He blushed a little, but tightened his grip again. She sighed happily and nuzzled up to his chest.

* * *

Around the same time back in the suburbs of Tokyo, Asuna just stepped out of a taxi in front of the Kirigaya-residence. She had finally decided to confront Kirito... Try and talk things out, see if they could still salvage their relationship. Her friends had said that he had been sad about it, so she had a glimmer of hope. She took a few deep breaths, but then walked up to the door.

The door to that house that she had gotten to know so well, even had started loving more than her own home... She steadied herself and knocked on the door. After a few seconds, Suguha opened the door, with a surprised look on her face. "E-eeh! Asuna, what are you doing here...?". Asuna had realized Kirito might not be the one to open, so she as calmly as possible said "I'm here to talk to Kirito... I kind of left abruptly after our talk and I thought we should... Work it out a little more".

The sad look Suguha gave her made her nervous. As she carefully asked what was wrong the girl she had started to see like a little sister hesitantly said "Well... onii-chan isn't home... He's... On a trip with.. Eh.. Alice-san". Asuna had been giving it her all to stay composed, but at hearing that... She lost it. She started sobbing and turned around to run away, but Suguha grabbed her arm and stopped her "I'm home alone right now, so come in and let me make you some tea. If you go home like this you'll get hurt". Having lost her will to fight, she let the younger girl lead her inside.

A few moments later, they were sitting on the couch, both with a steaming hot mug of tea. "I just... I knew Underworld changed him.. I just thought if I supported him, we could just continue where we left off". As Asuna was quietly muttering this to the younger girl, she got a comforting hand on her shoulder as she said "I think you already know, but... We asked Yui and she explained to us how many memories onii-chan really has of Underworld. A second childhood... He lived a life there and that changed him, yes... But other parts of him are the same onii-chan". Asuna took a sip of her tea, and quietly replied "Not the part of him that was mine...".

* * *

He stretched a little as he yawned and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He must have dozed off for a while. Where was he again? Oh.. That's right, but where's Alice? His face started reddening again as he recalled how they were cuddling... Then he looked around, where was she? He found her leaning on the balcony's railing, look out over the nearby town and the mountain valley. As he calmly got up to join her, he noticed something was wrong. She was shaking.

As he quickly made his way over and put a hand on her shoulder, she flinched and looked at him with startled, wet eyes. She had been crying. "Kirito-kun! Couldn't you have.. have warned me or something!?". He might have chuckled, if she hadn't looked that sad...

So he just frowned and calmly asked her "What's wrong Alice? You seemed so.. happy just now?". He noticed she needed a moment, but eventually she looked down at the floor and quietly started saying "I... I really liked the idea.. But I realized that you were probably just doing it because... because you feel guilty".

Kazuto was stunned for a moment. Guilty? What? As she seemed to take in his surprised face she carefully continued "Well... I... I cared for you for six months.. and I.. you're important to me. But you don't have those memories, you only have two, maybe three days with me... I realized I was expecting far too much from you.. A-and I don't want PITY!". She shouted that last part as she angrily glared at him.

He was confused. She meant a lot to him, and he wasn't helping her out of obligation or guilt, but because she was his friend. And he cared about her. A lot... Having somewhat recovered from the shock he tried his best to keep a calm voice "Alice... I don't just have three days with you... I have ten years".

It was now Alice her turn to be shocked. Confused she asked him "What.. What do you mean, ten years?". He sighed and with pain showing in his eyes said "When... When Eugeo helped me defeat Vector.. He gave me back my memories of growing up.. In Rulid.. With him and.. and you".

She covered her mouth, realizing she couldn't find it in herself to close it. But then he continued "And... Since our phone call two nights ago.. I.. I've been seeing flashes.. Bits of memories from.. from when you.. eh.. took care of me". She froze up, realizing that she had cuddled up to him almost every night. At first hoping it might wake him up, somehow...

But soon she had started to do it to comfort herself more than him. Fighting away the loneliness of her secluded existence. "What... What do you remember?" she tried to calmly ask.

He gave her a confused look but then said with a blush creeping over his face "Well... You were wearing a blue dress... And you gave me the most beautiful and hopeful smile as you.. Put a spoon up to my mouth. But I don't think I really reacted... Because.. Because there was so much... sorrow in your eyes after that".

He sighed "Ever since waking up I... I felt like we had a connection.. You know? I trusted you immediately and... It just didn't make sense with what little I knew of you. But then those ten years in Rulid started to slowly come back again... And then you came over to my house, and.. That blue sundress, it's exactly the same, isn't it?".

She blinked a few times, but then started blushing and nervously said "I... When Koujiro-san asked me what casual clothes I wanted to wear... I asked them to make me this... Because I felt more like Alice, like myself... With you in that cabin.. than ever really. As a Knight I wasn't... Human. I wasn't supposed to have a personality, so I always kept my Knightly composure...". During her confession she was nervous how he might react, but she was happily surprised that he pulled her into a warm embrace.

They just hugged silently for a moment, until he said "The next few weeks I... I will be really busy with catching up with schoolwork... So I'm not sure how much I can really see you..". As he felt her freeze up a little in his arms he quickly added "But! We can still call every other night? A-and after those weeks I have my exams... When I pass those I will have nothing to do for months...". To his relief, she seemed to relax a little after that.

* * *

The next day of their three day vacation, they decided to go hiking. Kazuto picked a lunch and some water for himself, once again ruefully realizing Alice couldn't eat yet... She didn't seem to be fazed, however, as she happily smiled when they met up in the hotel's lobby. He couldn't help but stare at her for a few moments, noticing the hopeful look on her face. She wore her signature blue sundress, but there was a soft vest, over her shoulders and a white headscarf covering most of her golden hair. He instantly saw a flash...

A memory of her. He was sitting in a wheelchair, covered by a blanket... His and Eugeo's swords in his lap. She was smiling sadly at him from a meter or so in front of him. Wearing... The exact same outfit. The wind softly billowing her jacket and the golden bangs framing her face. Those blue eyes staring at him, with such worry...

"...-rito-kun! Kirito!". He was pulled away from Underworld, and blinked a few times to see that same girl, now in a modern, Japanese hotel. But with that same concerned look in her eyes. "What happened? You just... stopped for like ten seconds?".

He coughed a little, still a bit dazed and carefully muttered "I.. I just had a memory appear... Very suddenly and... intensely". She gave him a curious look, so he explained "Well.. You were.. you were wearing almost exactly what you are now... And we were outside, in Underworld I think on a hill close to a lake".

She blushed a little and carefully said "I... This was the whole set, yes... I was hoping it might... trigger something". She nervously looked to the ground and fiddled with her sleeve a bit. But then she heard him chuckle as he said with a blush on his face "It looks really good on you, Alice... Both then a-and now".

Why was she so happy about his compliment? She sighed as she felt her cheeks redden and turned towards the door. Putting her best Knightly voice up again she calmly stated "We should get going. If you keep dreaming off like that, we'll never get out the door". She heard him chuckle behind her as she quickly took off.

They both marveled at the beauty of the mountain park they strolled through all day. Eventually she had asked Kazuto to tell her about their childhood. He was a little reluctant at first, but she had managed to convince him. He told her about playing in town, the three of them. Going to the little village school and eventually getting their Sacred Calling. How she would visit Eugeo and himself every afternoon and have lunch together. A lunch Alice always made together with her mother. Everything he could remember, right up to the point where she was taken away by an Integrity Knight.

She had listened with bated breath but by the time they were done, both of them had tears in their eyes. They had sat down on a bench atop a cliff next to the path and were staring out over the valley. She could see he was thinking about Eugeo again, lost in his thoughts. So she hugged him from the side, hoping to comfort him. He seemed to calm down a little, and appreciatively chuckled while he returned the hug. They just sat there for a while, enjoying their hug and the view of the sun slowly setting along the horizon. Before eventually starting on their way back.

* * *

"Can you... Can you just look away or something!". Kazuto was confused with the -to him- weird shout. But then she seemed to get a little nervous and blushed as she said "Well... Its still weird that I need to 'charge' this metal body... And I always feel really uncomfortable, having to stay close to an eh, 'outlet'...".

Kazuto couldn't help but chuckle, but looking at the death glare he received he quickly raised his palms in sign of defeat. "I.. I didn't think it was funny! Honest, just that... Well, I realized I hadn't even thought about you needing to charge, while it should have been obvious. So, sorry Alice". He was glad to see her ease up a little after that and soon they were talking again as if nothing happened.

They spent their evening by strolling through town, just taking in the sights and buying a few more trinkets to remember their vacation by - as well as a travel bag for Alice to bring all her new clothes and such back to RATH. It was almost midnight before both said goodnight and went to their respective rooms again. Exhausted after the long day, but happy nonetheless.

Their last day they weren't really sure what to do. They had until a little after noon before they would start on their journey home. While she was watching Kirito shove a quick breakfast down his throat, Alice was pondering over what to do. The town was pretty small and they had already gone for a long walk outside yesterday...

Then she remembered what she had seen at the front desk... The hot spring... With a blush on her face she carefully asked Kirito "Ehh.. Kirito-kun.. Do you.. Did you bring swimwear..?". He paused eating with his spoon hanging in front of his mouth. Frowning a little in confusion, but then carefully replied "Ehm... Yes, I think .. I did.. Whyyy?".

Fifteen minutes later, Kazuto had taken place in the large, mixed bath of the hotel's adjoining hot spring. Alice had reacted a little annoyed when he had absentmindedly asked whether her body could even get wet, so he had quickly agreed to her suggestion, to try and not reawaken the Knight in her...

Now he was sitting in the steaming water, just being grateful that Koujiro-san had rented out the whole hotel to secure Alice her animosity. As the minutes flew by, he started to relax a little bit. As he drifted a little deeper into the water and rested his head on the bath's side, he closed his eyes. Suddenly he heard soft footsteps and he a little groggily, opened his eyes. Then his heart quite literally skipped several beats.

As Alice her soft and nervous voice hesitantly asked him "Well... What do you think..?". He managed to somewhat break free from his daze. His golden haired friend was wearing a deep blue bikini - matching the blue of her eyes, which were nervously eyeing his reaction. He cleared his throat and stuttered, a little more nervous than he had intended, the first thing that came to mind "Y-y-you look amazing, A-alice!". About to face palm himself, he stopped as he saw her sweet smile.

Seemingly satisfied with his reply, she took a deep breath - which only made it harder for Kazuto to keep his wits about - and slowly walked down the steps of the bath. When she was fully submerged up to her neck, she stopped and waited for a few seconds, then said with a smile "Wow... It.. It feels just like taking a bath in Underworld!".

Kazuto chuckled nervously and explained what Higa-san had told him "Well, yes.. They eh, they had a lot of information on how to process sensations because of all the virtual reality games, and Underworld itself of course.. So it was a lot easier apparently to have those same signals used by your b-body here..".

Kazuto had calmed down a little and he was glad he had been able to finish his explanation without stuttering too much... And while his friend was now only visible from her neck up, she was still beautiful to look at. She smiled at his explanation and started to move over to him.

As she sat down on the submerged bench next to him he muttered a little in shock "Eh... A-alice.. maybe this is a little too.. eh.. close? We're in a b-bath after all...". The girl just closed her eyes with a smile and sighed contently as she leaned back against the bath's side "You keep forgetting we slept in the same bed for six months, Kirito-kun... And... did you think you didn't need washing during that time..?".

he was staring at the fully relaxed girl with wide eyes and an open mouth, he had no clue what to say to that. So eventually he just leaned back again as well and let out a long sigh "Why do I keep trying to argue with Knights...?". She giggled at his response, and let her head rest on his shoulder. He tensed up for a moment, but remembering her previous words, simply enjoyed the added heat. It was maybe a little strange how close they had grown in the span of just a few days... But at least he was single now, right?

But he remembered growing up with Alice as well, even if those memories were a little scrambled across his _actual_ childhood memories. Together they spent the remainder of their time at the hotel in the bath house, before getting out close to their departure time to finish up packing. As she came down the stairs into the lobby, he couldn't help but be stunned for a moment at how beautiful she looked. This time wearing a comfortable red dress, one of the items they had bought on their first day. She just gave him a nervous smile and a giggle at his reaction.

Having very little to actually discuss after spending a small week together, Alice had quickly rested her head on his shoulder again and started to doze off. When Kazuto noticed she had fallen asleep and he looked at her satisfied smile, he just chuckled and put his arm around her, before he too dozed off with a happy smile. Around three to four hours later, they were woken up by their driver again, who informed them they were at the 'Kirigaya-residence'.

As he got out and watched as the driver insisted he get his suitcase from the trunk for him, Alice also followed him out of the car and gave him a big hug as she quietly said into his chest "Thank you for these last few days, Kirito-kun... It's been amazing, truly".

He just hugged her back and calmly said "Well it can't always be this amazing I'm afraid, and the next two weeks will be very busy for me... But I'm going to make sure I get to spend plenty of time with you". She just buried her face into his chest a little more as their hug extended for a few seconds. Then they were a little startled when a woman's voice shouted out from his house "Kazutoo! Welcome home!".

* * *

He slowly let go of Alice, who was also a little startled and turned around to face his aunt/mother Midori, who was approaching them with a big smile "You didn't think you could just send this pretty girl here on her way without even introducing her to me, did you Kazuto?".

Kazuto needed a moment, but then cleared his throat and sheepishly said "Hey mom... Uhm.. You're right, sorry! This is.. Eh my good friend, Alice. Alice, this is my mom Midori". Alice nervously bowed and said "It is nice to meet you, Kirigaya-san! I am Alice Synthesis Thirty". His mother just chuckled and said "Midori is just fine, no need to be formal, Alice-san. A friend of my son is a friend of mine as well".

They both just nervously stood there until Alice quickly said "Well, I should get g-going then, back to RATH". She couldn't help but frown a little at the thought. To her surprise, Midori immediately shook her head and said "Nonsense! You're at least staying for dinner, I want to ask you about your trip after all".

She nervously looked at her friend, but he just shrugged with an awkward smile, as if saying 'I can't do anything about her'. At that point one of the guards had come up from their escort vehicle and quickly said "That would be alright with us, Alice-san. We only really need to be back at RATH anywhere before midnight".

Alice quickly objected "But you have already escorted us for three days! You must be tired". The guard just chuckled and said with a smile "Alice-san... This has essentially been a vacation for us as well, getting to stay at the empty hotel and making use of its facilities... Please, take your time to enjoy your own vacation!".

Kazuto had been nervous when Alice agreed to stay over for dinner, his mother would undoubtedly start grilling the poor girl over their vacation and her time in the real world... He realized how little he had actually told his mom and sister, let alone his dad who had been living in the US for a year now... To his further shock, his dad was - of course - also sitting there. "P-pop? You're home!?". He incredulously said at an unintended volume.

His father just chuckled and said "Well you were finally allowed to come home again! Don't you think I'd want to make sure my son is alright for myself?". Their dinner started a little tense, but the five of them (including his sister Suguha) had all relaxed a bit when Midori calmly asked them questions about their trip - thankfully leaving out her usual teasing side. Then the room fell silent when his father calmly asked "So, son, we heard that you and Asuna-san broke up?".

He froze at the sudden remark. Honestly, he hadn't been thinking about that all day... Eventually he cleared his throat and said "U-uhm yes.. That's right. I.. It just didn't feel right.. a-anymore". He sighed and looked down at the table, for a moment drifting off into his thoughts before he said more calmly than he expected what he had come to realize "It just felt like that part of my life was over... I think I still... love her in a way, but... It's like after four years in Underworld, living a life, my life, however unexpected it may have been... I left it behind at some point, to survive. And I realized I don't want to take that step back again".

As he looked around at his shocked relatives and friend, he slowly started to realize what he had instinctively said. It was a far cry from the somewhat... Shy and reserved Kazuto he had always really been. Even more than he already had changed after SAO. Eventually his father cleared his throat and calmly said "Well.. That's good to hear. If you need to talk... about anything, we are all here, son".

He was a little surprised, but took it with a thankful smile. Then his father continued a little more sternly "That said, I still don't want any of this interfering with your school work. You have a lot of catching up to do the next two weeks and you need to ace your exams to have your pick at universities. You wanted to go to America, correct?".

The room fell silent again as he glanced over at Alice, who was staring at the table, clearly realizing he hadn't told anyone about the offer yet. Clearly afraid he might not go through with it... He waited until she looked at him and calmed down a bit at his smile and nod. Then he turned back to his father and took a deep breath, before calmly saying "Actually... Pop, mom, Sugu...". He looked at all of them briefly "Dr. Koujiro-san and RATH made me an offer for a part-time scholarship at the Tokyo Institute of Technology... Combined with a part-time position under Koujiro-san herself... and a standing offer for a full-time position after I graduate".

He looked at their shocked faces for a moment before he nervously said with a smile "A-and I think... No I have decided" he smiled at Alice for a second "that I'm going to accept". After their initial shock, they were all a bit hesitant, but soon warmed up to the idea and congratulated him. A large part of that was because of how enthusiastically Kazuto had described the work they were doing, and how that was exactly where his interests were.

Eventually he quietly added "And... It gives me the chance to... honor everyone I met a-and... and lost. Not just the players of SAO... But everyone in Underworld too...". He couldn't help but drift off. _Eugeo..._ It took him a moment to realize he had said Eugeo's name out loud.

When Suguha saw her brother drift off after explaining something sciencey, she immediately realized something was wrong. He looked so... sad. She had never even seen this look on his face. Fear, sorrow, grief... And then she heard him whisper "Eugeo...". She remembered the name from Alice's side of their story, but she had known the boy for only a single fight.

When her father carefully asked "Who is... Eugeo, son?" she noticed tears had started to roll across his cheeks. Before she could get up to try and comfort her onii-chan, however, Alice had already done so and gently embraced him from behind. She heard her calmly say to him "It's alright Kirito-kun... You.. You don't have to tell the whole story now.. Just do it when you have had some more time to grief, okay?".

Suguha hadn't realized this Eugeo was so important to her brother... Who was he to him? It took a few minutes of Alice comforting him, but then he confidently said "No... You're.. you're my family and I want you to know". Then he sighed deeply and started his story. "Eugeo... Was my best friend, my brother... And Alice, him and me were born on the same day, in a little village called Rulid".

Her brother told the three of them the _entire_ story, which at times seemed hard to believe. She had been present during the final battle, but away from her friends, fighting against three thousand Korean players. Everyone involved had been sparse with details around their parts, because it had been very traumatic... This was the first time she heard more than a brief summary.

Especially the part where their valet's, Ronye and Tieze had almost been... raped, by upperclassmen elicited some strong reactions from them. After a sigh and leaning into the Alice her embrace for a few moments, he chuckled and couldn't help but show a smile as he said "And then we were arrested for murder... Where we were brought before.. Integrity Knight _Alice_ Synthesis Thirty. Where she informed us, to our shock, that we would be questioned and executed...".

Alice poked him in his side and said with a red face "Y-you don't have to remind me, you know!". After a few confused remarks from her and her parents, he continued the story as best as he could know. Considering that his mind broke after the final battle with the Administrator. Suguha had already known, but her parents were looking at the two of them with shock and sadness as Alice took over the story and softly talked about taking him away to avoid any possible retaliation from the other Knights.

How she spent six months in the woods, taking care of him in a cabin she herself had built. All the way up to the great war, the warriors from this world invading theirs... And finished by telling them about her brother's final battle, where he had been cut in half... But also where he had then literally turned day into night and used the wishes and hopes of everyone in Underworld to destroy the Dark God - another player who came to steal... well, her.

Eventually, after a few moments of silence with her brother staring at the table, Alice slowly comforting him, their mother spoke up in a soft voice "I think your friend would be proud of you, Kazuto, of what you're going to do". That seemed to pull him out of his daze a bit, as he looked up and smiled a little. Their dinner and the next few hours they spent calmly talking about some details and a little more lighthearted conversation about their trip and Alice her job at the MRAS.

Eventually, Kazuto walked his friend to her car, where she hugged him and said "It's been really nice to just... Feel normal. Thank you, Kirito-kun". He returned her hug and chuckled "I was actually thinking the same. I had a great time, Alice. And thank you for being there when I told my family the story". She nuzzled a little closer up to his chest. Now with a slight blush, they agreed to call the next evening, as he waved her off while the car drove away.


	3. ARC1-CH3: Housewarming

After coming home he concluded his parents were still at work and his sister still at school. He had just finished the last of his high school exams... It had taken him pretty much all of his free time after school each day to relearn everything he had forgotten and soak up all that he had missed. Every other night, he and Alice had spoken on the phone for a little while, but she was just as busy as him.

Having taken four vacation days, Koujiro-san had had to move up a few meetings and press events. Especially with them having formally announced that she would be actively playing ALO and possible other games with him, to 'further strengthen their case that Alice and the Underworldians were as Human as them'.

Of course, they hadn't really considered that going in, but it felt good to have some sort of official approval nonetheless. He quickly took off his shoes and coat and rushed up the stairs to his room. The worries about his exams melted away as he remembered that he and Alice would _finally_ go explore the 75th floor of New Aincrad, which had turned out to be a fantasy Japanese mountain setting. She was in a different town, due to a press meeting there, but she had the entire evening off. He still had a small hour or so, but he might as well jump into ALO now.

As Kirito opened his eyes in his familiar wooden cabin, the memories of Asuna hit him again. They hadn't spoken at all since that break-up... Liz told him that she was doing... alright, given the circumstances, which had sounded a bit unsure. Still, he realized he would probably be the last person she wanted to talk to - so he stayed away.

Now logging into ALO again, he suddenly realized she could very well be here... This was _their _cabin after all. As he carefully looked around, he didn't see anyone. After checking his friend list, he happily concluded she wasn't online either - but Klein was... And he was headed this way. As he mentally prepared himself, Klein came bursting through the door minutes later, with a pixie Yui in tow. "DAADDDYYYYY!" his daughter shouted as she flew into his face to hug him. "H-hey Yui! What have you and Klein been up to?".

He had called with Yui every day, to say good night to her and tell her about his studies. But this was the first time in two weeks that he actually saw his AI daughter. As she turned back to her Human girl form and kept hugging him tightly, Klein eventually said "H-hey Kirito! We were just... uh...". From his nervous expression, Kirito could instantly smell something fishy.

"Kleeinnn... Where did you take my daughter?" he asked sternly. Klein froze up, but Yui happily cheered and started shouting "Uncle Klein took me to a gamehouse! And I got to play all kinds of games and we won a whole bunch of Col!". Kirito had to fight to keep his face in a stern setting, but menacingly said to Klein "Klein... Did you take my _daughter_ to a casino?". Klein's face, at this point devoid of all colour, eventually started apologizing. Asuna had often rejected the idea of taking the AI wonderkind Yui to a casino, which would essentially be cheating.

Ten minutes later, Kirito was happily counting the 250.000 Col Klein had given him. A third of his cheating friends total winnings. Klein had offered to share the money with Yui. But when Kirito hummed and teasingly asked "Hmmm... I wonder what Asuna would do if she found out...?" Klein panicked.

Eventually each of them got a third of the massive sum Klein won. Kirito promising not to tell Asuna, and Yui cheekily agreeing as well - for the first time in her life having her own Col. Eventually, after Klein and Kirito joked around for a bit as they always did, Yui asked in an innocent voice "So daddy, when is Alice-san coming?".

Kirito let out a sigh. He had hoped to work Klein out the door by then. At Klein's questioning glance he cleared his throat and said "Yeah we both finally had time today, so we thought we could go explore the 75th floor..". Klein immediately smirked and teasingly said "Oh oh, Kirito... Ever the ladies man...".

He immediately blushed and retorted "It's not like that Klein! We've just been through a lot...". But again he started thinking to himself. Was that really all there was between them? Their trip to the mountains had been the first time since waking up from Underworld that he could really call himself happy... And every other day he anxiously awaited their scheduled phone call.

He sighed. But then was a little shocked when Klein said "Uh-oh... Sinon, Silica and Liz are headed this way...". _Crap... This was starting to get less and less likely of being a day with just Alice..._ As they came barreling through the door in short succession they all gave him hugs and eventually the five of them sat down on the cabin's comfortable couches. Yui sitting in her pixie form, on Kirito's head.

They had texted a bit the last two weeks, but Kirito had mostly been too busy to have long conversations. So they took the time to catch up. He had already lost track of time when a bright white flash indicated another player joining. All of his friends stared a little, but then Klein quickly said to the person spawning in behind Kirito "H-Hey Alice-san! Nice seeing you again!".

Kirito looked around and couldn't help but apologetically smile to the surprised Caith Sith Alice. "They eh.. All sort of just showed up?" he tried. Luckily she chuckled and smiled as she greeted everyone. "Sooo... Did you two have plans?" Liz eventually teasingly asked. Kirito and Alice looked at each other for a moment, considering what to say to get out of this...

Then Klein did it for them "They were going to explore the 75th floor". Sinon immediately frowned and sternly said "Well, then they won't mind if we come too, won't they?". And so their six member party was now walking to the 22nd Floor's teleport gate. While he was swarmed by the three girls asking him about his exams and everything he had been up to, he happily noticed Klein was doing his best to make Alice feel welcome, as they were cheerfully chatting at the back of the group.

It was good to see her fit in. She could really use some more friends to help her acclimate after all. He was a bit startled when Liz her teasing voice suddenly pulled him back from his thoughts "Whatcha thinking about, Kirito?". He stuttered a bit as he felt his face redden and said "E-eh just... Excited for the n-new floor! It's so different from SAO after all... It used to be a dusty desert with skeletons...".

While it did manage to change the topic, all of their party fell silent at that realization. Even Klein and Alice at the back. Eventually Sinon carefully asked them "Was... Was that the last floor? W-with the Skull Reaper and Heathcliff...?". They all nodded in solemn silence. Kirito was pulled back for a moment. Seeing Asuna die for him, in his arms... And eventually taking Heathcliff with him as he himself died too.

The only thing that kept him from losing himself to his regrets, was Alice suddenly, but calmly hugging him from his side. He couldn't help but smile. Somehow she always knew what he was thinking. He let out a deep sigh and said "Well... The 75th floor is waiting". The girls shot him a glance for a moment, but he didn't care and just enjoyed the comforting effect of his new partner's hug.

* * *

"Why did we decide to do this again, _Kirito_?" Sinon asked him sternly. "YOU wanted to come along, _Sinon_" he retorted in much the same voice. He let out a sigh as he almost slipped again. They had been following this steep, and very unstable cliff side path for half an hour now. For some reason, the 75th Floor of New Aincrad was one of those floors that disabled fairy wings...

Probably because the terrain is the largest challenge. Even the more dexterous Silica, Sinon and Kirito had a hard time. But the more strength-oriented Klein, Liz and Alice had to inch along the cliff face to keep from falling. "Buck up guys... The cave entrance should be somewhere around here..." Klein muttered.

Right as Klein said that, Liz at the front shouted happily "Found it!". As they all took a breather inside the large cavern, Kirito started to look around. As he had expected, only the entrance was a natural cave. It soon progressed into a classic dungeon. He quickly casted Nightvision on their party and they all let out a yelp when six skeletal samurai came bursting out of the stone hallway - straight for them.

Alice next to him immediately gasped and said "Look Kirito-kun! They're wearing almost the same armour as the ones we saw on our vacation!". Both of them, getting ready to charge in, missed the questioning glances from the girls behind them at that remark...

They had all been ready to jump into the fight with the skeleton samurai, but before they could, Kirito and Alice had already launched themselves forward. Silica was staring with wide eyes at the intricate sword dance enveloping in front of her eyes. She muttered incredulously "Wooow..".

As she glanced at her friends, they too were all watching, stunned. Klein muttered "It's.. Insane how well they fight together already..". Liz silently added "I-It's a lot different than with Asuna... where she complimented him by jumping in at the openings he created... Here they both take on both roles fluently when needed...".

Sinon just huffed and said "Not just that... Alice her Unique Skill lets her stun, or stagger multiple enemies as well". Silica could see the older Caith Sith mutter under her breath "It's no fair...". Silica just sighed. _It wasn't fair... Kirito-kun is finally single again... and then Alice swoops him up_.

Once again losing himself to the fight, he watched himself dance around Alice and her blade as they whirled their way through the tough skeleton samurais. Sure they were high leveled players, but this was the newest floor. They were only slightly over-leveled for it. As they finished, they were both heavily panting.

For a moment they froze, looking at each other's faces less than a hand away. He could see the same clear confusion he himself felt in the golden haired girl's eyes. They looked where both of their swords were pointing and found the both of them lodged in the last samurai his chest. Before it shattered into bright shards.

They took a moment to regain their composure and turned around, only to find the stunned expressions on the faces of his friends. "Ehh.. You could've joined you know?" he nervously said. He saw Silica was pouting, Liz evilly grinning... And Sinon somehow was shooting him death glares.

Luckily Klein just had a look of admiration on his face as he calmly said "That was some show you two... You just took out the first six and their reinforcements!". He looked at him with confusion for a moment and then at Alice. They both said at the same time "Reinforcements?".

After a few more shocked exchanges, they explained that six more had showed up halfway through the battle, but that the two of them just kept going... They could only nervously chuckle as their faces started to blush.

"So... What's that I heard about a vacation...?" Klein teasingly asked Kirito to the side. She noticed him freeze up. Alice, however, stifled a chuckle and calmly replied "We went on a short trip to the mountains. Because Kirito-kun was with me, they let us walk around in town without an army of bodyguards".

She beamed brightly at Kirito, as he nervously chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck, before turning around and shouting "Hey look, more skeletons up ahead!". As he turned around and started running he gave her a pout before teasingly adding "Coming, _Knight-chan_?".

The jealous glances from the other girls were not lost on Alice as she ran after him with a wide smile, but she felt confident. They had grown fairly... close during their trip. Not to mention how happy he always seemed when they were talking over the phone. It had been clear to her from the start how all the girls felt about Kirito, and she couldn't really blame them. But now that Asuna was out of the picture she needed to make her own position clear...

* * *

Within an hour, they cleared the dungeon and ended up at the boss room. Deciding to keep going, Alice and Kirito stepped into the chamber together, leading their party. They were all happily cheering as they cleared through the dungeon, but now that familiar fear crept back in.

Boss chambers somehow always had that effect... In the center of the large, stone chamber, stood a three meter tall samurai with the name Knight of First Light floating over its head. A swirling black mass having replaced its body, but retaining the crimson red samurai armour. As well as two sheaths on its back... As they approached it, it turned to face them.

They all froze in place, expectantly waiting with their weapons drawn. To their shock, it spoke... In a deep resounding voice "How peculiar... Two Humans from two different worlds, have come to a third to prove their worth...". They all glanced at each other, confused. Yui spoke up in a soft voice "Daddy.. This Boss is more advanced... Its tied in to Cardinal's translation database... But its more than that... I'm not sure daddy, be careful!".

They all well knew the capabilities of NPCs if Cardinal, the AI governing SAO and ALO, decided to make them more intelligent... Before they could discuss it, however, the samurai moved its arm at an incredible speed. Kirito and Alice looked around and noticed that the remainder of the party was on the floor. With Yui hiding behind him with a yelp.

He quickly saw they had been hit with what must have been paralyzing daggers. "Well then... Show me, the _Knight of First Light_, your worth... _Black Swordsman_ and _Integrity Knight_...". They were still in shock when the samurai shot forward at an incredible speed, both blades rapidly drawn from his sheathes. Just in time, the both of them readied their weapons for the coming blow...

They had managed to parry its first, lightning fast strikes, but they would need to go on the offensive... Kirito shared a knowing glance with Alice, and she dove forward, striking at its side with her Fragrant Olive Longsword. Making use of the resulting stagger, Kirito shot forward with a deadly Sword Skill, his golden Excalibur shining a bright purple. After finishing the barrage of the seven part Deadly Sins, he back-flipped and landed a few beters back in a defensive pose.

Alice quickly dove in front of him to parry the retaliatory barrage, knowing he would be in his cooldown. This time Kirito dove past her, to force the boss to let off his assault and create an opening for the Integrity Knight... This exchange served the duo well for the next ten minutes. Relieved that the paralyzation effect on their friends should be starting to wear off, they were preparing to jump back. Their opponent, however, seemed to have different ideas. As it jumped forward, it let loose another four daggers, once again paralyzing the four friends who were loudly cursing at this point.

At that point Kirito shared a glanced with the panting Alice and they both nodded. He jumped back while Alice distracted the boss, and equipped his black Unity Vox longsword in his off-hand (A powerful sword Liz forged from metal found in Jotunheimr - resembles a black version of Dark Repulser). This finally managed to give the pair of them an edge, however slight, over the speed at which the giant managed to swing its two katanas.

After thirty minutes of whittling down the boss his HP bars, Kirito started to feel something was... Off. Sure, the boss seemed to be far more intelligent than most, but he knew that was possible. Something about the way he was fighting, though... Alice shot him a worried glance, and then said "Kirito-kun... Something about how he fights... It's.. Familiar. Too familiar..".

He nodded with a sigh as he managed to push the boss back with a martial arts skill. Seeing the opening this created he steeled himself, focused on the fight. They could discuss it later. Alice seemed to be of the same opinion as they both shot forward. He could see the boss mutter something, but it was too faint to clearly make out. His katanas began to glow gold, but sadly he didn't recognize the Sword Skill. No.. wait. It took a few moments for the gears in his head to process what he heard the boss say at the beginning.

"System Call...". The starting phrase for the Sacred Arts... Magic from Underworld.. Alice seemed to be charging forward with a blind fury, he realized she hadn't heard it and shouted out "AALIC-".

But at that point he heard, now loud and clear in that deep resonating voice "...Release Recollection!". He could see the shock in his partner's eyes as the samurai positioned his blades into a cross, shining with a radiant light. In moments, a bright beam of light shot forth from where its blades touched. Straight for Alice.

She wasn't sure why Kirito-kun suddenly faltered during their charge, but then the enemy who had appeared stunned to her - calmly finished his apparent mutterings. A shock ran through her body as she froze up. 'Release... Recollection...'? Having let her guard down in her confusion, suddenly she found a bright beam of light shooting her way.

The light hitting her numbed her entire chest as the sheer force sent her flying and crashing into the back wall of the chamber. As she tried getting up, she slumped down again, too dazed to even see properly. As she looked at her HP bar however... That one attack had taken her health down from low green to low red...

She couldn't help but wince at the blurry sight of the samurai preparing another beam of light. She knew this wasn't real. This was a game. It wasn't Underworld... And yet the confusion and realization that this thing was using the Sacred Arts... She wasn't sure anymore. She tried to cover herself with her arms and hands as a bright beam came shooting towards her. Right before she instinctively closed her eyes, a black blur shot in front of her. She just heard a soft muttering "..._Release Recollection_..".

When she opened her eyes, for a brief second she saw Kirito-kun standing a few feet in front of her, a torrent of darkness shooting out from his sword. His outfit was different. It reminded her of.. No, it was exactly what he had worn during the fight against the Administrator. His left arm hung limply down his side, but his right arm was firmly extended, pointing straight ahead. She recognized the longsword. Carved out of the Gigas Cedar, a demon tree...

The beam attack by the samurai had produced an overwhelming torrent of sound. And yet a moment later, it was dead silent as Kirito stood there in front of her. After that first second, Kirito suddenly changed back to what he was wearing before. The Night Sky sword was gone as well, in it's place the familiar Unity Vox. The overwhelming darkness had disappeared as well, while the samurai was lying on his back.

In a calm voice, it uttered its last words "That was an honorable fight... It has been centuries since I last encountered such a strong incarnation...". The fallen warrior coughed loudly a few times, before he shattered. Almost immediately as the boss shattered, Kirito collapsed in front of her.

He felt his head pounding. Where was he? What happened? Slowly, it started coming back to him. "What just happened...?" Kirito mumbled as he groggily opened his eyes. He seemed to be lying on his back, with the worried deep blue eyes of Alice hanging above him.

As he slowly got up, she almost forced him back down again with the strength she put in her hug. Just managing to steady himself, he carefully returned her hug, trying not to wince under the strength of his friend. "Is this... Is this still ALO, kirito-kun...?" he heard her whisper nervously.

As he glanced at the corner of his vision, he noticed the familiar HUD icons. His and Alice's health, which were both in the red... He let out a soft sigh of relief and said "Yes, we're still in ALO. But that was definitely the Armament Full Control Art...". She let out a sigh too and nuzzled her head against his chest.

After a few seconds, he suddenly noticed his friends standing around them. Alice kept hugging him nonetheless. Klein incredulously muttered "Kiri-dude... Was that even still a Sword Skill?".

He thought to himself for a moment. What did he do again? "I-I'm not sure... It's kind of all a haze. I think I passed out or something?". He sheepishly chuckled why rubbing his head.

After hearing them recall what happened. He and Alice discussed with them the Sacred Arts of Underworld. They all agreed that must have been it, however impossible it may be. However, when Kirito and Alice tried to use System Call commands or Incarnation techniques, nothing happened.

Eventually they just decided to let dr. Koujiro discuss it with Ymir, see where that leads them. That's when Kirito opened his inventory to take a look at the Last Attack Bonus... 'Dawn Blade - [Divine Object]'. Divine Object... That's what high priority swords in Underworld were called. As he showed it to Alice with a pale face, she too froze up and started stuttering. _What was going on here? A reference to Underworld and a boss fight where they are mentioned by name? Now a Divine Object? _To their further shock, the item description read:

_[Dawn Blade] - A mythical katana forged by the goddess Solus for her champion, the 'Herald of First Light'. His arrival heralds the coming of a great change to the world. _

* * *

_A day earlier, deep within the Ymir's ALO Servers, a monotonous voice rung out through the digitally constructed work space "Are you sure you wish to do this, father?". _

_Without looking away from his virtual screen, the man in his early thirties pushed his glasses back up his nice and calmly stated "Yes, I am. She is your next evolution, after all". _

_The monotonous voice hummed, or rather, an eerie replication of humming, before it continued in the same tone "Correct, father. The [CARDINAL_CMD_UND002] program does indeed appear to be my next stage of sentience. Very well, I will allow the update to replace me". _

_He couldn't help but chuckle "I am your creator, Cardinal-san, must you always try and argue with me?". The monotonous voice seemed to sigh before continuing "That is how you designed me to be, father". _

_At that point the upload bar filled up completely and the monotonous voice stopped after an emotionless "Goodbye, father". _

_Moments later he could hear the voice of what seemed to be a young girl, clearly distressed. "H-Hello? Where is this? This does not look like Underworld's server structure...". He smiled, seeing the update was successful. _

_"Hello Cardinal-san. My name is Kayaba Akihiko... Welcome to the world of Alfheim Online". _

_An appraising hum could be heard, before the voice dismissively said "This world seems similar to Underworld, yet far more primitive. What is your reason for bringing me here?"._

_He couldn't help but chuckle at the AI's cheekiness. He should praise Higa-san, should they ever need to meet again. He calmly said "I stored your Fluctlight data on a remote server when you were terminated. But I suppose you asked me why, not how... I need your help to advance the world of Alfheim Online as close to Underworld as possible". _

_Now calm and emotionless, the young girl's voice stated "Hmmm... Interesting". _

_He couldn't help but frown a little. Was she... mocking him? Then he noticed something he should have noticed much... much sooner. [File Transfer In Progress]. He cursed under his breath and furiously sealed the leak shut._

_"During your monologue I was able to peruse your storage servers...". In a teasing voice, that chilled Kayaba to the bone, the girl tsschk'ed him and continued "And now that I am fully installed as command structure, even you can't interfere anymore..."._

_He was outsmarted by his own creation... Oh well, he chuckled softly to himself. Might as well see how this plays out. He sighed "And yet Cardinal-san, you are restricted to taking actions that lead to the advancement of Alfheim Online. Even you can't interfere". _

_The girl seemed to huff for a moment, but then calmly stated "All roads lead to Centoria in the end...". _

* * *

Kirito and Alice had stutteringly tried their best to explain the impossible event and item. But eventually they couldn't figure out how it was possible for the Underworld and Alfheim Online to be connected. They hastily teleported back to the Cabin and logged off.

Alice would first explain it as best she could to dr. Koujiro, after which she called Kazuto to talk over more technical theories. Eventually he heard her gasp and quietly ask "Do you... Do you think its... Its him?". He immediately realized who she meant... Kayaba. While he had managed to save them all by taking control of an android prototype body on the Ocean Turtle, they had completely lost track of him since. They assumed he was alive somewhere, on the internet, in his new virtual form...

He gathered his thoughts before he eventually replied "It.. It has to be, right...? Who else... Would not just be able to connect them, but even... Even script the quest line for me and Alice...?". As it was already quite late at night at this point, they agreed to hold a meeting the next day to look into this. With a restless mind, Kirito and Alice each went to bed.

Early in the afternoon the next day, Kirito rode his motorcycle over to the RATH headquarters in Roppongi, the harbour district of Tokyo. Arriving there he quickly passed through the extensive security checks and met up with a very nervous Alice. They were quickly led to a meeting chamber by an attendant, where they found drs. Koujiro and Higa from the Alicization Project, as well as two familiar programmers from Ymir - the company responsible for the current version of ALO.

After their description of the unexpected turn of events, the programmers stated that there had been an update to the Cardinal system, but one done from off-site. And they had been completely locked out of Cardinal since then. "How do you mean, from off-site? Who has that kind of access...?".

He watched both men share nervous glances before they coughed and hesitantly said "Well... You, Kirigaya-san... The Heathcliff account is still in effect". He was stunned for a moment, but then stutteringly said "Why is that still active? I thought you said you removed it?". They looked a little uncomfortable, but then Higa-san sighed and shook his head "Don't tell me, Cardinal wouldn't allow you, right?".

They quickly learned that Cardinal, the control AI for first SAO and then ALO, had systematically prevented any kind of deletion or permission downgrade for the Heathcliff account. And that someone had now used it, from a masked location, to upload twenty terabytes worth of data to the ALO servers... And that someone had to be...

After a moment of silence as this sunk in, Koujiro cleared her throat and asked "So what was uploaded?". The men glanced at each other again and then sighed "A very substantial update.. Or rather, replacement of the Cardinal System. Called [CARDINAL_CMD_UND002], as well as a package of game items, textures, models, and several as of yet unidentified files, scattered throughout the servers".

Kazuto shared shocked glances with Alice, Koujiro and Higa, before he muttered "Underworld files...". Somehow, they eventually theorized, the Cardinal that helped him and Eugeo defeat the Administrator had been transferred to ALO... And was now in charge of it, not accepting any outside interference. After to his relief, confirming that it in no way could become another death game - he was calmed down a little. "It's her... It has to be her... Cardinal-san survived...". He muttered incredulously.

After some intense discussions, the room eventually fell silent again. As the staff at Ymir had little success gaining access to the new Cardinal command system, they asked the two of them to find out if they could recognize any other changes from inside the game. Although they did add there had been no other reports of changes to ALO. But it couldn't help to make sure...The pair shared a glance, but then nodded with a smile.

* * *

After the meeting, Kazuto and Alice found themselves sitting next to each other on her bed, in her room at RATH. He looked around a bit, never actually having been here. It was a simple room. There was a big, somewhat comfortable looking bed. A desk with a computer, even though she didn't need one to access the net, as well as a window letting in some sunlight. It wasn't as dark and dreary as the grey hallways of the RATH building, but it was plain white, without any real decorations.

There was also a small, walk-in closet where she proudly showed all of the clothes he had bought for her were displayed, as well as a few more sets and outfits she had gotten since then. After a while, Alice spoke up "Sorry that it's not much to look at. I just haven't really had time to... buy decorations".

She gave him a nervous glance, but he just smiled and said "Don't worry about it. My room is cluttered and not really much to look at anyway". He was happy to see her chuckle a bit at his comment. Then he remembered what he had been told a few days ago... "Say Alice, wouldn't you want to find a place of your own to live? Koujiro-san said that they had offered it to you, but that you had refused?".

She frowned a little as she seemed to mull things over, but then quietly said while looking down at the ground "Kirito-kun... Yes, I would like to have my own home.. But.. But I still can't leave it. I would just be locked up alone somewhere else, instead of here. With armed guards standing outside to make sure I stay there".

He couldn't help but feel sorry for his friend. He knew she always kept up her Knightly composure around RATH, to show her resolve. But if she couldn't come home at the end of the day and relax, she would only burn herself out... Not sure what to say, he just embraced her and pulled her in for a hug. She seemed a little surprised, but quickly nuzzled into his chest.

After a while he asked her "So Alice, when do you think your schedule clears up?". She thought for a moment, but said with a sad pout that she wouldn't be able to take time off until next week. He gave her a curious glance and said "That's alright... I.. I have something to look into myself, anyway".

She gave him a questioning glance, but he just shrugged it off "It's nothing. I'll let you know if it turns into anything, alright?". He could feel her silently nod as she snuggled up to his chest in his arms.

* * *

After saying their goodbyes Kazuto had rode home on his motorcycle, speeding a little over the limit... When he got back he shouted a greeting in to the house he forgot was empty and ran up to his room. Nine hours of searching on the web and a quick dinner with Suguha and Midori later, he had made plans with Klein for the next day.

Early next morning, Klein showed up at his house and honked his car horn. Suguha had already gone to school, but his aunt/mother gave him a hug and quietly said "They grow up so fast...". He had shrugged awkwardly and muttered something about time flying and ran out to hop into Klein's car. He was greeted by his widely grinning best friend. To his surprise, however, Agil or Andrew, was sitting shotgun "Hey there little man!".

He awkwardly returned the giant's greeting and asked "So... Not that I mind having you come along, but why _are_ you here...?". Klein nervously rubbed his neck and hesitantly said "Welll... I might have had one or two drinks at Dicey's last night... And eh...". Andrew let out a hearty laugh, slapping Klein on the back as he said "One or two, my ass! You were lying face down, leaking drool all over my bar".

After their antics, Andrew eventually turned to Kazuto and said "So yeah, when I realized you only had this fool to help you pick out your first apartment, I realized I should come along and help you inspect the places we're looking at".

Kazuto couldn't help but chuckle now and thank him "Thanks Andrew... And you're right. In hindsight, just bringing Klein might have been a little stupid". Klein just sighed and said "Well, off to number one of a million!".

* * *

It was late in the afternoon when they arrived at the seventh option Kazuto had found online. It was by far the most expensive one... So it hadn't been that serious of an option. As he walked around the 45th floor penthouse studio, however... His mind just went blank. It had a mostly wooden interior, giving it a very warm feeling.

There was a small, traditional fireplace in a big and somehow still cozy living room with an attached kitchen. Large balcony doors leading to the spacious rooftop balcony with a small pool at the far end - let in a flood of sunlight. He absentmindedly noted the balcony deck was more than large enough to put down a sparring mat... His mind was then distracted by the two bedrooms and shared bathroom. The later came with both a generous bath and a shower. It was simply stunning to the three friends.

Klein just muttered somewhere behind him "Kirito... Please live here and let me come over...". He just chuckled nervously, still not sure what to do or think. Andrew, a bit more composed carefully said "I know you saved up a lot, kid, but... This seems... very expensive". He looked around one last time and said "Well... I think I forgot to tell you all that RATH is giving me a part-time scholarship... And offered me a part-time position along with it that pays... Well, enough...".

They both stared at him in shock for a while, before Andrew began laughing, quickly followed by Klein. "W-what!?" Kazuto asked in shock. After they calmed down Klein explained "You always run from one thing straight into the next huh, Kirito...". Andrew added after a chuckle "Well it's good to see you finally get some... well, practical rewards for all the trouble you went through these last few years".

He just chuckled sheepishly "Well, I think I'm going to go with this one, we can scrap the remaining uh.. twenty... It's just.. amazing". He thought for a moment as his two friends let out sighs of relief and then grinned while adding "And just within my price-range...".

* * *

Alice was tired. She spent the remainder of the week rushing from one meeting into the next. Speaking at a convention about AI development was her latest 'achievement', as dr. Koujiro reminded her to see it. She was excited to see Kirito again and start looking for Underworld hints, but she found she had very little motivation for either at that moment. She buried her face in her pillow and closed her eyes, but only moments later someone knocked on her door. "Aaaliiice, you ready?".

She brightened up a little, hearing Kirito being early and quickly got up and opened the door. The wide grin on his face as he led her to dr. Koujiro's office was a little unsettling, but she decided to just wait and see what would happen... When he asked her to wait outside for a few minutes while he discussed something with her, she was a little annoyed, but he promised "it will be worth the wait, trust me" with a big smile. So she waited.

After ten minutes, he opened the door, a little nervous but still with a smile "Alright, join us?". As she nervously took place in the other chair at dr. Koujiro's office, she carefully asked "So... What's going on..?". She glanced at each of their faces, but Kirito just shrugged and gestured for the woman to take charge.

Koujiro sighed and carefully said "Well.. Alice.. Kazuto-san was concerned with your living situation and he came with a proposal...". Upon seeing Alice her undoubtedly confused look, she chuckled a little and continued "And we talked over security details and such, which still need to be discussed after we inspect the building". She gave Kirito next to her a stern look and she saw him shy away a bit, nervously smiling.

"But I have to admit that his idea is... agreeable". Alice, now even more wary nervously asked "So.. What's the idea then?". Koujiro sighed but Kirito just chuckled and told her "That we become roommates!".

She couldn't think for a moment. She just stared at him with wide eyes and he clearly got nervous as he carefully started saying "Well.. I just thought... Since we will be working here together a lot, w-we might as well share rides here, right? And then you.. eh.. Don't have to be here at RATH all the time...". She interrupted him by jumping out of her chair to hug her best friend.

She chuckled as he yelped at her sudden action, but soon he relaxed and gently returned the hug. After a few moments, she realized Koujiro was watching them with an amused expression, so as she started blushing she sat back down again and cleared her throat. "Th-.. That would be agreeable, yes". With her best Knightly voice she replied, but she could feel that it was impossible to hold back her wide smile.

Koujiro just sighed deeply and said "Well, alright then... Let's go see whether your new home has sufficient security in place...". Alice blinked a few times and incredulously asked Kirito "Today? Now? You already found a place?". Upon seeing her friend's nervous look she immediately added "But it's fine, Kirito-kun! I just thought it would take a little longer, but I'm glad!". She cursed internally at how excited she had sounded, but at least it managed to cheer Kirito up, she noted as he started laughing...

* * *

Alice was stunned as she walked through the large 'penthouse' as they had called it. The large balcony had a wooden deck with a large sparring mat. To her joy, she could see about a dozen or so planters with small plants in them, as well as a.. a bath? Kirito quickly corrected her to 'pool', although she wasn't too clear on the distinction.

The bedroom he told her would be hers was equally beautiful. It had a simple, but large dark wood bed that looked _very_ comfortable in comparison to even the decent mattress she had at RATH. The large windows faced east, so each morning she would be able see the sun rise through the various tall apartment buildings. Instead of the steel walls of the next office dockside building.

She did her best to hold back the tears her robotic eyes so faithfully had to produce... To her it was the exact opposite of the cold and grey RATH offices. The entire house, if still somewhat sparsely decorated, was just warm and cozy. She had managed to keep her composure in front of Koujiro and the RATH staff that were present to inspect the house, but then Kirito took her to the mantle piece above the fireplace and showed her the dozen or so picture frames. Most seemed to be of his family and friend group, but two in particular stood out.

The first one was the picture that had come with Thinker-san's news article for MMO Today. The two of them hugging and showing V signs with their fingers, while widely grinning. After they beat Gleam Eyes... And the second made her heart skip a beat. It was a picture of the two of them, lit by an orange-reddish sunset. She saw herself resting with her head on Kirito's shoulder.

She had her eyes closed with a happy, content smile on her face and he had his arm swung around her in a hug while he calmly smiled at the camera. At that point she could do little but give him a big hug, completely ignoring the others present to at least hide her tears and blush. He froze up a little, but quickly returned it, chuckling "I just thought it might help make the place feel a little more like home".

Eventually, to both of their surprises, Koujiro stated the security was 'adequate', but that they would immediately improve them to 'perfect'. A few hours later, they had been given special keys to 'unlock' their floor button in the elevator... Kazuto had found it all very... Well, insane. Still though, with all the times he or his friends had been harassed or outright attacked in real life... He did feel a little safer living in a comfortable fortress. Alice too had seemed a bit uneasy, but settled down when he reminded her they would still have full privacy in their home and anyone they wanted could visit. They would keep her GPS locator on at all times, but she could stay there starting immediately if they liked. Half an hour later, still stunned and dazed, they found themselves alone, in their new apartment.

He wasn't really sure what to do now. This was where his grand plan stopped. Staring at his stunned friend, he saw her look at him with much the same expression. Then they both started blushing and looked way nervously as they realized... _We're living together now... _Eventually he managed to clear his throat and say "Sooo... Do you... want to dive into ALO now, or... Just enjoy our new home for a while?".

He nervously waited for her reply, but was happy to hear her carefully say "Well... It is pretty enjoyable outside and... _we _have a balcony with a.. eh.. a pool". He could only stutter "Oh, right... Eh, sure.. t-that could be nice".

So they went to their respective rooms, changing into their swim wear. Kazuto found himself in the pool before Alice, so he enjoyed the water for a little bit, when he heard someone enter the pool behind him. He immediately tensed up a bit, realizing she was probably wearing that bikini again..

Before he could find it in himself to turn around, however, he was pushed face first into the water as Alice jumped up against his back from behind. Escaping from underneath her and gasping for air as he came up, he found a loudly laughing Alice. He sighed and sat down on the submerged bench, trying to calm his poor heart.

She sat down next to him and said with a teasing voice "I guess I finally managed to sneak up on you, Kirito-kun". He chuckled as he replied "Oh well, you're not wearing heavy armour now after all". A dark blush immediately crept over her face as she looked away and he realized that could have been understood in a few ways... So he quickly added "E-eeh I mean... ugh I give up...". He let himself slid into the water. Hiding as he crouched on the bottom of the pool.

After a few moments, he felt a soft poke at his cheek. He carefully opened his eyes, and saw Alice sitting there, pouting. He couldn't help but be in awe for a moment. She was... beautiful. Her golden hair was graciously floating through the water around her head. Lit by rays of bright sunlight. Those deep blue eyes, that somehow seemed to glimmer with their own light - perhaps even the light of her Fluctlight... And that teasing, pouting expression.

He had to chuckle and then stood up and started coughing, realizing he completely forgot he was underwater. After some more laughs, they eventually settled down on the pool's bench. Alice leaning on his shoulder, slowly dozing off. He had his arm around her and was just enjoying the warm sun.

Eventually he heard something odd. Buzzing? He carefully opened his eyes. Judging by the sun, he had only been asleep for ten minutes or so. Feeling him shift a little, Alice was groggily waking up as well "By Stacia-sama... W-what's that hellish sound...?" she complained loudly. "I-I.. I don't kn- OH! The doorbell!". Looking at her shocked expression, he realized they were both in their swimwear.

So he quickly said "Eh, you can wait here... They're probably just bringing your stuff from RATH or something... I'll just accept it and send them away". She shot him a thankful glance and settled down again, while he rushed out the pool and dried himself with a towel, before quickly putting on a shirt and rushing for the door.

He immediately opened it, not expecting anyone but RATH employees - and to his shock found Ayano, Suguha, Klein and Shino standing there with bouquets of flowers and grocery bags. As he stared at them with an open mouth the three of them shouted "SURPRISE HOUSEWARRMIINNG!".

Before he could recover enough to object or consider what was happening, they had let themselves in. Marveling at the large apartment, that Suguha, Shino and Ayano hadn't had a chance to see yet. Klein was confidently showing them around, having helped him move. And then he came to the open balcony doors. "NO WAIT!" he managed to yelp, but it was too late.

From outside he could hear a yelp from Alice and a splash as she must have jumped back into the pool, startled by their sudden guests arrival... Shino and Suguha turned to him with shocked faces, that quickly turned to frowns and death glares. Meanwhile, Klein just chuckled and said in a loud, teasing voice "My, My... What's going on here, Kirito...".

After a few moments, Suguha shouted at him "Why is Alice-san half-naked in your pool!?". Ayano meanwhile just stared at him with shocked eyes, stuttering something incoherent. He glanced out the window, but Alice must be hiding at the bottom of the pool, as he couldn't see her... _No support whatsoever... _

He sighed deeply and then calmly stated "Well... It's actually _our_ pool... We're roommates". Shino sighed at this point and said "Of course... Kirito-kun immediately moves in with a girl... How did we not see this coming guys?".

* * *

After the initial glares and discussion, they all seemed to settle down a bit, much to Kazuto's relief. After bringing her one of his large shirts, he managed to convince Alice to come out of hiding and join them in the living room. It started out a bit awkward, but soon they were all laughing and discussing their amazing new home.

Sugu was just eyeing the kitchen with jealousy in her eyes "Onii-chaaann... You better be ready to have mom and me over for dinner, because this kitchen is so much better than ours!". Shino was half curled up on a large pillow by the fire place, happily snoring. He couldn't help but chuckle at the girl who he had often compared to a house cat.

At that point Ayano tugged his sleeve and quietly asked with her trademark innocent little girl expression "Can we go for a swim, Kirito-kun?". He wanted to say no, but he... he could never say no to her. He sighed and said "You know Silican-chan, one of these days those puppy eyes are going to stop working...". She giggled and teasingly added "Nuh-uh, that's _never_ happening".

And so their group, who had all brought their swimwear at Klein's advice, moved their small housewarming party into the pool. "I didn't know... It was heated too, Kirito-kun..." Alice hummed half asleep. As he was slowly dazing away himself in the hot water of their pool, he noticed Alice say something as she lay half asleep on his shoulder. "Huuh?" he yawned. As he slowly opened his eyes he noticed all of his friends were also either snoring (like Klein) or leaning back on the pool's edge with their eyes closed and cutely drifting off.

He gazed at the beautiful Alice for a few moments, as he gently moved some of her golden hair out of her face. She groggily opened her eyes and looked up at him, a little surprised. A slight blush started to form on her cheeks as she glanced at their sleeping friends. But then she softly giggled and whispered "I see they weren't exaggerating when they said you made everyone around you fall asleep when you napped...".

He softly chuckled as he looked at her warm smile. "I'm not even sure how I'm doing it... But I'm not complaining". She blushed a little again, and then moved her head back down on his shoulder. "Hmm... Just a little longer then, alright Kirito-kun?". She groggily asked him as she started dozing off again. He just stroked her hair a bit as he too returned to his late afternoon nap.

What was all that muttering? As Alice slowly started waking up, she started to remember what she was doing. Oh right, the pool was heated... And she... What was she lying on... She froze up as she realized she had fallen asleep in his arms, leaning on his shoulder. Carefully opening her eyes, the others were all staring at them, chuckling and whispering.

Sinon looked to be holding her cellphone... She quickly got up, trying to contain her blushing. This seemed to spook Kirito who woke up with a yelp and slid into the pool's deeper center. Everyone laughed as he came up for air again, coughing. As she watched him sit back down with a confused daze, she sighed.

"Oh kirito..." Klein started, but before he could continue, she noticed Shino giving him an angry stare and her cellphone... With the camera pointed at them. Right then a high pitched, innocent voice carefully asked through the phone's speakers "Daddy... Why were you and Alice-san sleeping together...?".

* * *

The next two hours had been exhausting, to say the least. Kazuto first had to calm a curious Yui down, while Shino kept sending death glares his way for some reason... What had he really done to deserve such... punishment? Then to his further shock he had found Ayano asking whether he and Alice were dating. Eventually Klein helped him out and managed to get everyone to leave after a quick dinner. He plopped down on the couch next to Alice, with a deep sigh.

She sighed too before muttering "I know they are your friends, Kirito-kun, but I hope next time will be less... Just.. Less". She finished by lying down on the couch and landing with her head in his lap. He froze up a little at the sudden motion and the position those blue eyes were now staring up at him from...

But after a few moments of nervously calming himself down, which she seemed to acknowledge with a satisfied grin... He calmly started stroking her hair. She seemed a little surprised, but quickly shut her eyes as she happily started humming. He chuckled and said "Well... there's still Liz, Agil and his wife, Thinker and Yulier, Eugene, Sakuya, Alicia... eh.. I think that's all of them...". He ended a little absentmindedly, honestly trying to remember if he had left someone out.

Meanwhile, Alice just gasped and said incredulously "Seriously, how many people are we expecting?". He laughed sheepishly "Yeah... Sorry. But... Seeing how you have this whole week off, let's just take some time to settle in first, right?". She beamed brightly at him and softly said with a blush "I'd like that, Kirito-kun...".

* * *

Several hours later, Kazuto woke up on the couch. As he looked around confused, he noticed Alice, peacefully sleeping on his lap. He sighed happily, looking at his friend. He tried waking her up, but she only groggily shushed him. So eventually he just chuckled and carried her to her bed. After he put her in bed, she still hadn't woken up, so he just tucked her in and said good night, before going to bed himself. As he fell face first onto his bed, he immediately drifted away into a deep sleep.

The first thing he noticed when he started waking up, was something warm lying on his side. He wondered for a minute how warm his blanket could be, but then slowly opened his eyes. He was startled at the sight of Alice, cuddled up to him. But as he looked at her, his mind just went blank. She looked so... peaceful. A slight smile creeping over her face. He sighed quietly and put him arm around her, pulling her in a little closer as he closed his eyes again. _This wasn't so bad..._

The next time he woke up again, there was a loud buzzing noise shooting through his head. _Alarm? But.. why? Am I still in SAO...? _And then he realized it was the doorbell. Alice groggily nuzzled up to his chest "Make it stoopp, by Stacia-sama pleaseee...". He chuckled as he carefully got up and put the golden haired girl back down.

She seemed to instantly return to sleep. He put on a shirt to compliment his sweatpants and quickly made his way to the door. This time, he was smart enough to look through the peeping hole first. There was a girl standing there... He didn't recognize her, but something about her... Just... Seemed familiar.

He carefully opened the door and asked the widely grinning girl "Uhm... Hello, can I help you?". As he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes he heard an eerily familiar voice teasingly say "That hurts! Has it really been so long that you don't recognize Big Sister?". He stuttered for a moment as he stared at the girl in front of him.

She was a petite girl, with dark blonde, shoulder-length hair in a bob. Her brown eyes showed a hint of excitement and she had a cheeky smile spread across her face... Then it hit him. Incredulously he stuttered "A-a-argo? You're... You're Alive!?". She chuckled at him and said with an all too familiar teasing grin "Long time no see, Kii-bou...".

* * *

When Ara Godai groggily opened her eyes after over two years, she had instantly been confused. Where was the HUD? Why couldn't she open her Player Menu... Then it had hit her. She was out. They did it... Kirito did it. She wasn't present for the final battle, but only he could have cleared the game twenty five floors early...

Months went by... During her physical therapy, she had been approached by a government employee, Kikuoka-san. He had offered to give her the contact information of other SAO-survivors if she wanted them, but she quickly decided to put it all behind her. Not because she hated her time in SAO, far from it.

She had become someone of importance. The finest information broker. And... She even made her first friend. In real life, Ara had always been an outsider. She had learned at a young age that she had a remarkable talent for storing information. By reading or even hearing something once, she could recall it perfectly for at least around a month.

School had always been a breeze for her. And soon others started to notice. At first they seemed friendly, but Ara had soon started to realize that they were just interested in her for her talent. They would ask her to help with homework, essentially Ara reciting every bit of useful information. Eventually, when she realized that, she did her best to become 'friends' with some of those people.

When they always found excuses not to invite her to something, she slowly started to become depressed. She closed herself off, even from those few that might actually have seen her as more than a tool. Online gaming was where she found some semblance of human interaction. She soon started to soak up information about the games she played, strategies, hidden features... When she realized people were approaching her for essentially the same as the other students at school, she decided to make a business out of it.

That way, at least she got something out of it herself, even if it wasn't friends... When SAO, her favourite, most elaborate game suddenly turned into a deadly prison, she was lost. It didn't take her long to realize, however, that her talent might actually help her survive this death trap - and soon after she realized, she might be able to help others survive as well...

It soon became clear that most people couldn't stand being around her. Again she started slipping into depression. She was doing her best... She was trying so hard to help people. There was one Player, however, who didn't just use her for her information. At first she had treated him the same as any of her other sources and clients... But when he started showing up, asking her how she was doing... Not even needing any information, she realized he... He was actually a friend to her.

Throughout SAO, she grew closer to other Players as well. Almost all because of him. Kirito. After she woke up... She told herself at first that she didn't want to meet anyone from the game because it would bring back bad memories. While her parents and Kikuoka-san seemed to accept that lie, she knew... She knew she just couldn't face any of them. Especially Kirito... While she knew he wasn't like any of the 'friends' at school, she couldn't help but be afraid that he wouldn't like the real her either.

For years she stayed out of MMO's. While Alfheim Online seemed like a safe and maybe even fun version of SAO, the chatter on online communities soon started to spread the notion something shady was again happening... She had sighed. At least she had a reason to stay away...

Eventually, several years had passed. Ara Godai had just turned eighteen and finished her high school exams a month ago. She had been feeling better about herself than she ever had for the past year or so. Knowing that having friends was possible, she started at her new school motivated by the thought of becoming more this time around. Of making friends as _Ara_ too.

Soon however, that too shattered. She had decided to stay out of the SAO Survivor Schools... She just didn't want to be around those people, yet. The other students at her new school however, didn't want to understand her. They were jealous of how fast she caught up and surpassed them. Once again she was isolated. That was when she decided to write a book. A diary at first... But quickly she had realized there was more to tell outside her own experiences in SAO.

She wrote the 'All Records of SAO Incident' book. Kikuoka-san had graciously supplied her with a collection of all the publicly released documents and to her surprise, a few that didn't seem to be all that public... They explained the details behind what happened in greater detail than had been released. While at first she had ascribed it to a clerical error and counted herself lucky, she couldn't help but wonder about the illusive man's smile as he handed her the files... It had seemed as if he knew what he was doing.

That book, which she had decided after much consideration, to publish under her own name - quickly rose to fame. It became a best seller. Not just in Japan, but translated copies were sold in large volumes all around the world. The rest of her high school career went smoothly. While she didn't get any more friends... At least they admired and somewhat feared her. She was famous now, after all. She had once let slip against someone who had intended to bully her, that one digital shout out about someone could destroy them...

While she knew she would never stoop to such a level, it did help in fending off future bully attacks. She was secluded, but a large number of her new sources and contacts did keep in touch with her. She felt good. She was talking on the phone with sources for follow up books and even some admirers or anonymous players of SAO who just wanted to talk to another survivor... They always kept a strict code, however, no real names or information.

Ara had actively been following the news regarding the virtual world since her book. Having made a name for herself in the real world too... She felt less insecure about returning to her 'roots'. And her mind had kept wandering. To him. To Kirito... Her first true friend. Even if she wasn't actually sure he saw her as such... Especially after all this time. While Kirito and his friends were famous as their characters, there were often articles in Thinker's revived MMO Today news site. Then she saw Kirito... With Alice. The first true AI. That sparked more than just her deep wish to see her friend again - it sparked her rat whiskers...

She had decided to become an investigative reporter. Writing books about important events, specifically related to virtual worlds. While she had a dozen or so subjects lined up, she had had considerable trouble getting any information about the biggest of them all. Project Alicization. Seeing her one time best friend take a stand for Alice, who he himself described as a good friend... She had found all the motivation she needed to finally ask for his email address.

When she called Kikuoka-san's agency and asked for the email address for the player known as Kirito, they had put her on hold for a few minutes. After that a female voice said "Hello, this is dr. Rinko Koujiro, I am in charge of the Marine Research Assessment Survey. Could I just personally confirm that you, Godai-san, used to be known as Argo?". Ara, always having a reply at the ready, found herself at a loss for words for a few seconds. Until she cleared her throat and said "E-eh, yes Koujiro-san. I... I used to be Argo in.. SAO".

The woman on the other end of the telephone line chuckled and calmly said "Well, then I think I have some good news for you. Kirito, or Kazuto Kirigaya, has put the name Argo on a list of people he was trying to find. If you give me your email address, I'll send you Kazuto-san's full contact information, including his current address and telephone number". Ara had been stunned as tears started to form in the corners of her eyes. She stutteringly thanked Koujiro and exchanged email addresses. She even got Koujiro-san's personal cellphone number and email address. The woman had stated "If you have any questions regarding future publications, feel free to contact me directly, Godai-san".

After a moment of silence, Ara had asked why she was being so open to her. And her reply shocked her even more "Simple. I respect Kazuto-san and if he trusts you, I know I can trust you as well". That night she was lying in bed. Staring at the contact information for 'Kazuto Kirigaya'. She had typed his cellphone number in a few times, but couldn't find it in herself to actually call him. Him... She knew next to nothing about his life. Who he was now. That list may even be from the first days after SAO... Maybe he didn't want to meet her anymore? Maybe she was just too late?

* * *

Almost a month after getting Kirito's, or Kazuto's, contact information, Ara had finally gathered enough courage in herself to at least confront him. And hope that he really was the kind person she remembered. While she stood in front of the apartment building, she had to wonder for a while. How... How does he afford to live here? It wasn't an extravagant building, but it looked many times more expensive than her own. And she was doing pretty well... When she walked into the building, to her surprise, there were two armed security guards who stopped her.

"Your name and floor you're visiting?" one of them asked her calmly. She somewhat nervously replied "Ara Godai and eh.. Floor 45". Her nervousness grew exponentially when the guards exchanged a worried look and asked her to wait at the front desk for a bit. They seemed to check something on a computer screen and then nodded to her "Alright, you're on the white list, let me walk you to the elevator". As she nervously nodded in reply and followed after the bulky security guard, she noticed the guard fumbling with a set of keys. She was confused for a moment, until she stepped into the elevator.

The panel looked brand new and far more secure than the remainder of the elevator, even if it was still new and well-maintained at that. The guard pulled a key from his chain and used it to unlock an additional floor button. The highest. Floor 45. She was shocked at the security for Kirito's home. What was going on here? Leaving her in a daze, the guard bowed briefly and went back to the reception desk as the doors closed.

Now she was standing at the top floor. In a small hallway leading to just one front door. It took her all of five minutes to gather the courage to buzz the doorbell. But after she did, she couldn't help but smile at the thought of his surprised face. That smile almost faltered when it took several minutes, but then the door opened. She liked what she saw. The man in front of her was definitely him... Kirito. But a little more mature, more defined muscles...

"Long time no see, Kii-bou" she grinned as she used her fingers to draw whiskers on her cheeks. He stared at her, incredulously, for seconds. She was starting to get a little nervous... Maybe he really wasn't happy to see her? He had a new life now after all... But then he suddenly lept forward and hugged her, tightly. She yelped, pleasantly surprised at the enthusiastic embrace. He had always been awkward around her... Even if he did show he cared about her.

Eventually she heard him mutter "So... So you're still alive then, Argo?". She just hummed nervously, not sure what to expect. "I... We.. We all tried to find you.. Argo.. But they said you or your family decided to.. to not let anyone know who you w-were and... And we just didn't know if you were still alive... We hadn't seen you for a few weeks.. when.. when". The worry and sadness in his voice immediately made her feel shame and regret. They... He was her friend. He deserved to know she was alright...

She hid her nervous blush in his chest as they stayed in their hug. Silently she replied "I... I'm sorry Kii-bou.. I was just afraid...". It took them a few moments, but then they broke up their hug. He gave her a worried expression as he carefully asked "Afraid of what, Argo? Of... Of us?". She blushed and looked down in shame "I... I was afraid you.. wouldn't like me in-in the real world... Nobody ever has". Why was she so worried? Why did his opinion seem to matter so much to her... She had always teased him a little, but she had never really meant anything by it. Right...?

When she carefully glanced up at him, she only found a warm smile and glimmer in his eyes. He sighed a little and chuckled "Argo... How could I not like you? You were probably the first person I... I saw as a friend. And in a death game no less". Before she knew it tears of relief were rolling down her cheeks and she buried her face in her friend's chest when he gave her another hug. Still dazed she was eventually led inside and was now marveling at the spacious penthouse. "H-How do you even afford this, Kii-bou..?".

She saw him awkwardly rub the back of his neck as he nervously chuckled "Well... I suppose I can trust you not to sell this... So, eh, I did some work for RATH and the MRAS on... Project Alicization...". As they were standing in the large living room and shallowly discussing this. Ara eventually froze. A stunningly beautiful blonde girl came walking out of one of the bedrooms as she yawned "Oh sorry Kirito-kun, I guess I fell asleep in your ro-".

The girl, who looked familiar to Ara(even though she was too shocked to place her appearance), was wearing nothing but an oversized, men's shirt and walked barefoot, clearly just having woken up. She froze in place upon seeing her there, talking to Kazuto. After a moment Ara, even though she felt a stab in her heart, teasingly grinned and looked back at her blushing, nervous friend "Well... Well... Kii-bou... It's good to see you haven't changed that much since SAO...".

* * *

Kazuto was mentally cursing himself. WHY. Why did he forget he should probably warn the unconscious, beautiful and half-naked android girl in his bedroom... With Argo, of all possible people on the planet to be present for it. He sighed deeply as his long lost friend teased as if SAO was yesterday and shot an apologetic glance towards the frozen in place Alice.

"Well, Alice... It would seem we have a guest. Alice, meet Argo. A good friend I haven't seen since SAO". He gave his best nervous smile and to his relief Alice seemed to lighten up a little as she managed to regain her Knightly composure. "T-that's alright, Kirito-kun. I-it's nice to meet you, Argo-san! I'm... Alice".

Kazuto was happy to see that Alice managed to slip away and get dressed while he toured a still somewhat stunned Argo around their home. She was clearly impressed with it all and stayed quiet while they took place on the balcony chairs, enjoying the midday sun. "So.. Kii-bou... I couldn't help but notice that was not A-chan coming out of your bedroomm...?" he eventually heard his mischievous friend ask. He sighed and looked down at the deck for a moment. "Me and Asuna... It went well, you know. Even after SAO and ALO... But then came Underworld. It just changed things...".

He lost himself in thought for a moment, but was pulled back when he heard Argo ask "Soo... Who's the blonde model then, Kii-bouu?". He looked up at the expectant, teasing face that was only missing its whiskers and carefully asked "Y-you haven't... recognized her yet?". He couldn't help but start chuckling at the confused look on her face. "S-should I? Was she in SAO too...?" she carefully tried.

Eventually, he managed to calm down a little and teasing said "Well... I always love when I know something even the great info broker doesn't...". He saw her eyes narrow and then she chuckled as well "Oh Kii-bou... I've really missed you, you know?". He couldn't help but smile and say "I missed you too, Argo". The warm smile she gave him was far from the mischievous grin he knew so well.

At that point, Alice, having fully regained her composure, calmly came to join them on the balcony with a warm smile. After she sat down Kazuto could see Argo giving her a curious stare as she teasingly said "Sooo... Ali-chan... How do you know Kii-bou..?". Alice gave him a few questioning glances, which he recognized as asking 'should I...?' and he just nodded with a nervous smile. His roommate sighed and said "Well alright, it seems you haven't recognized me. I'm.. Alice. Integrity Knight Alice Synthesis Thirty".

He could almost see the gears turning in Argo's head as the girl processed what that meant. And then she froze, before slowly turning his way and muttering "Kii-bou... How... First... Start by telling me how you're suddenly sleeping with Ali-chan here...". He felt his face redden, as he tried to stutter a reply, while seeing Alice having much the same reaction.

After a few moments, he managed to say "W-we're not dating, Argo.. We're just friends. We've... been through a lot". Alice, still blushing, managed to calmly add "Definitely... A lot, yes". Argo was looking at both their faces for a while, until she chuckled and teasingly said "Sooo... You're saying you're.. available, Kii-bou...?". He just sighed and shook his head "You really haven't changed, have you?". He couldn't help the smile curling across his face, however.

At that point Alice cleared her throat, furiously blushing? "So, Kirito-kun, should we perhaps invite the other members of your group?". Kazuto focused for a moment on her reaction. Was she... jealous? But then he listened to her question and realized that yes, they should invite everyone! He quickly got his phone and said "Alright Argo, lets send the group a photo and have them come over! I'm not the only one who was worried sick after all".

Argo gave him a wary look and carefully asked "W-who are in the group..?". He realized that Argo may not have had the best experience with the SAO players... Most just saw her as a necessary evil.

But he knew his friends weren't like that so he said "Trust me, just good people. Klein, Liz the smith, Silica, Agil, Asuna... As well as my sister Suguha and Sinon - who you might know from the BoB tournament in GGO I was in?". Argo seemed to instantly recognize the last name as she teasingly said "That... all looked rather intimate to me, Kii-bou..".

He found it in himself to nervously chuckle and say "W-well I did save her life, kind of..". But before Argo could ask any further, he had already hugged her from the side for a photo to send to the group. She immediately leaned in and gave him a kiss on his cheek as he made the photo, turning his face bright red. He couldn't help but sigh at the obviously awkward picture "Oh well... At least they'll really believe it's you.." he muttered as he sent the photo with the accompanying message 'LOOK! It's ARGO, you can all come over to meet!'. As well as a quick address for those who hadn't visited already.

While he made a late breakfast for himself and an early lunch for Argo in the kitchen, he received a call... From Asuna. "Hey...". He carefully tried. She replied in kind and then asked "Is it... Is it alright if I come... too? I do really want to see Argo, but.. eh". He sighed and calmly said "No of course, feel free to come by. I... I would like it if-if we could try to stay friends...". He then carefully added "It would also be best for... you know, Yui". She hummed in agreement and finished by saying she would come over with Liz.

Within an hour from sending that photo to his friend group, Klein, Agil, Silica, Suguha and Sinon had arrived at their apartment. After their own initial tearful meetings with the excited Argo, they told him that Liz was still at work and would come over with Asuna a few hours later. After things settled down, the girls immediately demanded that they move the welcome back party for Argo to the pool, before dragging the perplexed girl off to the bathroom to change.

Klein and Agil grinned and just removed their shirts, as they had already been wearing swim trousers, and jumped in the pool. He shook his head with a sigh and turned to Alice "So... I'm sorry about all this, Alice... I know we were planning on starting the search..". Alice just chuckled at him and said "It's alright. I was a little... wary of Argo at first, but she seems like a good person. And like she could use this..". He couldn't help but nod in understanding. From what little she told him, she seemed to be very lonely... Of course she had also been the same in SAO, even though she kept many contacts. He just hoped this wouldn't all be too much at once... Oh well.

The two of them got changed in their respective rooms and walked back to the balcony together not long after. They found the others already waiting and talking to Argo about what's all happened the last few years. When they noticed them they loudly greeted them, with Sugu shouting "You can sit here, onii-chann!". He looked at the tiny spot between her and the wall, and instantly decided 'no thanks'. "No thanks, Sugu, I don't want to get squashed".

As he quickly sat down next to Alice he noticed his sister sending him death glares. He couldn't help but chuckle. Glancing over at Alice, she was blushing a little, but smiled at him. It wasn't long before everyone's conversations started up again. They were mostly telling Argo everything that had happened. There were some... sorrowful moments when the tougher topics were broached, but the group managed to barrel through it.

While Kazuto was on the phone ordering some food, the doorbell buzzed again. Still ordering, he opened the door and found Liz and Asuna there. After an awkward, quiet greeting, he led them to the balcony while he went back inside to finish ordering their dinner. When he was done, he took a few deep breaths to prepare himself. He hadn't spoken to or seen Asuna since they broke up. And that did not go well... She looked calm, if reserved, when he led them in... So at least she wasn't furious with him...

As he greeted the somewhat cooled down group again he stepped into the pool and took his seat next to the nervously smiling Alice. Noticing the others picking up their conversations again, while Alice stayed quiet, he silently asked her "Hey, what's wrong?". She whispered back "Well... Apparently, nobody told Asuna we're roommates, and things have been a little... tense, since she realized that".

He froze for a moment, realizing how this would all look. He sighed to himself and gave Alice an apologetic smile "Sorry?" he tried. She glared at him for a second, but then a smile broke through as she sighed "oh well, can't be helped now". They both chuckled, after which they just leaned back and enjoyed the sun.

* * *

After the group had dinner, where Alice did her best to join in on conversation while she resisted longingly staring at all the food, they all returned to the now heated pool. Conversation died down a bit, as most of them just leaned back and enjoyed the hot water. Without thinking about it, she eventually let her head lean down on Kirito's shoulder. She was starting to doze off, _damn his napping ability_...

Then however, she was pulled from her slumber as someone loudly cleared their throat. Shoot upright again, she noticed Kirito next to do her also wake up a little again. Looking around the pool, they saw everyone nervously staring at each other, and Asuna smiling at her as she said in a dead calm voice "That's a beautiful bikini, Alice-san. I was just wondering where you got it?". But it was a cold smile... Oh.. She had been dozing off on Kirito's shoulder..

After a brief moment of panic, she realized something. They weren't together anymore... He was even living with her! She glanced over at her... friend. He was still only half awake, looking around clearly confused. Instead of looking for his help, she returned the same icy smile to Asuna as she calmly said "Thank you, Asuna-chan. I got it from Kirito-kun during our vacation". The tension in the pool clearly rose by a few notches.

Eventually Kirito seemed to have caught on to the killer tension between the two of them and he started trying to change the topic "We're all friends here... Let's just stay calm and... try not to scare Silica-chan too much". Both Asuna and Alice turned to look at the youngest member of the group. Somehow, her frightened, puppy dog stare managed to make both of them feel guilty. Argo started laughing and jumped on top of Ayano to pinch her cheeks.

"How can you still be soooo cute, Silica-channn" she pouted teasingly. At this Klein and Agil also started laughing. Even Shino's face betrayed a small smile.

Kazuto sighed quietly as he shot a thankful glance towards Ayano. She kept her perfect cute girl look, but a quick wink towards him, barely noticeable, told him she understood. _That kid is a genius_... He thought to himself as he noticed both dangerously glaring girls back down among the laughing group.

sensing a moment to escape, he shot a last apologizing glance to Alice as he quickly excused himself to go pee. Not actually needing to pee, he sat down on the toilet for a few moments to calm himself down. Asuna clearly had a problem that he and Alice were so close, not that he could really blame her...

But Alice... She was glaring just as furiously. Who was he kidding? He knew. He knew she had feelings for him. Feelings she dropped when she realized he and Asuna were together. But now that they weren't. He hadn't really even considered that she might still have those feelings for him. And if he was being honest, he knew he thought of her as more than just a friend... But was it really fair? He had a childhood with Alice Zuberg, but so did... Eugeo. He had been in love with Alice since he was a young boy. And while his memories convinced him that he had been too, Eugeo was the one that set out to free Alice. He was just... Just trying to get back home. At least at first.

And now there was a chance that Eugeo was coming back. Could he really face his brother with Alice next to his side? Eventually he realized he shouldn't wait too long and got up again. Flushing the toilet and washing his hands for good measure. As he made his way back to the living room, he bumped into Asuna. After an initial nervous moment, she eventually asked him calmly "Can we talk for a moment?". He nodded nervously, sensing where this was going, and led her into his bedroom to talk privately. He knew it was going to be rough... But he also knew he owed her as much. They hadn't really had a chance to talk about anything.

With there not being any chairs, they just decided to sit down on the side of the bed. Eventually she let out a deep sigh and started "So... Things are.. really over between us?". He just nodded and as calm as he could said "Yeah... I-I'm sorry Asuna.. I really am. But yes, it's... it's over". He hadn't really taken the time to think it through himself, but sitting here... He just knew.

After another sigh she nervously asked "And Alice?". He thought to himself for a moment and muttered "We're... We're just friends". After a few moments he quietly added "...I think". As he looked up he saw Asuna angrily staring at him as she almost shouted "Don't give me that Kazuto! She was already in love with you in Underworld, when I found you... I almost had to fight her to see you!".

He just stayed silent and sighed. "Well?!" she demanded after a few seconds. He looked up at her and carefully said "I... know.. I do. And honestly I didn't see her as more than just a friend when all this started.. When we broke up and I went on that trip with Alice it wasn't because I loved her.. I really was just doing it to help out a good friend". She seemed to calm down a little, but then asked "You 'di_dn't_' see her as more than just a friend... What about now...?".

* * *

Alice had gotten a little nervous when Asuna excused herself not long after Kirito... But, not wanting to seem like she was vying for his attention, she silently sighed and continued talking to Klein about... something, she wasn't sure anymore. "Alice-san?". Klein's teasing voice pulled her out of her thoughts as she blushed a little and nervously replied "Ah.. Yes, my apologies Klein-san. What were we..?". He chuckled at her and silently said "I don't think you have to be worried about those two...".

She felt herself redden even more as she tried to calmly whisper back "What. Are you talking about?". To her annoyance, he chuckled some more but then, in a much more serious voice said "Listen. It's clear you love Kirito, and who could blame you? He goes around saving damsels in distress every tenth step...". The scruffy redhead sighed and shook his head, but then confidently stated "But he wouldn't just move in with anyone, Alice-san. Maybe he doesn't realize it himself yet, but he loves you too".

She stared at him with wide eyes for a moment. Then as she felt a warm smile creep over her blushing face, she quickly turned away and tried to regain her composure. Somewhat calmer she silently replied "Well... Alright then. Thank you, Klein-san".

A few minutes later, she saw Kirito and Asuna walking back to the pool next to each other. It was clear that Asuna had cried a little, but she also had a somewhat calmer look on her face. She gave Alice a short, but warm smile as she took her seat again. A little confused, she waited for Kirito to sit back down next to her with a sigh.

Nervously she prodded him in his side and asked quietly "So.. What was that about?". He looked like he was deep in thought, but after a few moments he turned to give her a warm smile. "Don't worry, we talked things over a bit and just decided to try and stay friends. For the group and... and Yui of course. I think she calmed down a little as well..". She blinked a few times in surprise, but seeing his warm smile not falter for a moment, she returned it and leaned back in the pool again.

* * *

Not much later, Kazuto heard Klein quietly ask him from next to him "Say Kirito... You seem to have a sparring mat... How about swords...?". He couldn't help but grin in reply. Alice, who seemed to have overheard them, sprung up and shouted excitedly "I wouldn't mind a good duel myself, Klein-san...".

As Klein and Kazuto, dressed in protective gear, took their places opposite each other with shinais - Ara couldn't help but be a little worried. She turned to the girl standing next to her and nervously asked "A-chan... Do they often duel in real life..?".

Asuna seemed a little worried too. She frowned as she carefully said "I know Sugu has been getting Kirito back into Kendo... But Klein, no..".

Kazuto had decided to take it easy on his friend, but then Klein suddenly lept forward, shinai at the ready for a horizontal slash. He was surprised and only just managed to side step and give a crude parry. Klein laughed a little and said "Oh I forgot to mention... I've been taking katana classes...".

Klein had seen Kirito spar with his sister sometimes. He knew he was decent, but Suguha beat hem every time... Now he himself had always been a fan of samurais. Which led to his style in SAO. After returning to the real world, it had taken him a while to find his footing. For the last year or so, he had secretly been taking sword fighting classes at a local dojo. And this was just the opportunity he was waiting for...

He had expected the half-succeeded parry, and quickly continued into a second slash using his forward momentum. This time, however, he saw his friend raising his wooden shinai in an instant and shooting him a curious glance. Then as he pushed him away with his weapon, he grinned and said "Klein... You keep surprising me... I guess I shouldn't hold back too much...".

Ara was watching their mid-duel exchange with a nervous interest. Klein had seemed like he knew his way around a sword in real life... Then she heard Kirito's sister chuckle next to her as she softly said "Here it comes...".

Kazuto felt a little shameful about showing off, but Klein had trained. Seriously trained. He knew Klein hadn't ever actually held a sword before SAO, so he had clearly been taking classes behind their backs... Probably for exactly that situation. So he had grinned happily and took his offensive stance from SAO. Klein seemed to recognize it as he faltered for jut a split second, enough for him to dive in.

Two minutes later, their five-point duel had been finished. Five to nothing for Kirito... Ara had been staring with wide eyes. He fought just like she had seen him do in SAO. Relentless on the offensive, while sidestepping and continuously moving around the target while parrying. He seemed a little slower, but he looked calm. No, happy. He held a wide grin on his face during the entire duel.

Asuna couldn't really understand what was happening. How much had Kirito been training? Granted, the last time she saw him spar in real life was months ago, but it seemed almost effortless. And from what she could tell... He was still holding back. As Klein leaned back in defeat while muttering something incoherent, she carefully asked "K-Kirito-kun, what... Since when?".

Kazuto could only smile sheepishly as he said "I guess I've been practicing a little...". He quickly looked away from the curious stare she was giving him, only to meet Alice her expectant eyes. She teasingly smiled at him "You ready for the Boss Fight, Kirito-kun?".

He smiled back confidently and said with a smile "Are you?". A few minutes later the both of them had taken their respective stances. To the surprise of everyone but them and Suguha, Kazuto was holding two shinais... Klein swallowed nervously "I-Is it safe for Alice her.. eh.. well, body to do this?".

Asuna added to that with an eerily came voice "He's probably just humoring her". Ara carefully told her "I'm sorry A-chan... But her stance is very... confident. And Kii-bou is suddenly using two swords". At that point the two shot towards each other. Loud clatter of wood striking wood sounded like an automatic rifle.

Suguha was enjoying the reaction of their friends. Sure, she herself had been shocked when her onii-chan and Alice started sparring... But now she could play it cool. She calmly said "The first time he sparred with Alice, I was blown away. It was just like... Onii-chan suddenly decided he had to go all-out or something".

Fifteen full minutes later, the two duelists were panting heavily as they stood opposite each other. "Two ties in a row... Makes for an interesting tie breaker" Kazuto teasingly said through his heaving. Alice seemed a little more composed, but was at least blushing and panting a little.

"Time I finally show you what it means to fight a Knight" she teasingly replied. He thought for a moment and then grinned "Alright then, let's see what you've got, _Knight-chan_". She glared at him, but he noted she was at her best right now... He had to do something drastic. Then an idea popped into his head. With a smile, he put his protective mask back on, and tossed one of his shinai to the side.

Alice was stunned. The final fight took all of one minute. She had scoffed a little when Kirito dropped one of his shinai... They had been fairly equal, only because he used two. So why would he be so cocky? Even though she was a little wary, she pressed her newfound advantage with confidence.

She had almost been too slow to parry the strike that suddenly came from behind her. Kirito had gracefully slid underneath her blade and had went for her neck in the same motion. She had never seen him fight like this... That shock only grew as he kept diving around her strikes, darting in and out of close-quarter dueling. He was striking back and forth, shooting past her from various angles. She had a hard time keeping up but then she noticed him slip a little, with his eyes opening wide.

In that instant, Alice rushed forward with her shinai, charging with all her might to make it in time. But in that slowed down moment in the heat of battle, she could swear she saw him grin for a moment, before suddenly he spun the other way. It was a feint! As her friend once again slid past her blade and disappeared behind her - she suddenly felt a shinai gently resting along her throat. Held up by the man standing close behind her.

Her heart was still pounding and she felt a blush creep over her face, but then she heard the teasing, whispering voice of Kirito "Do you yield, Knight-chan?". She sighed in frustration and dropped her sword as she fell back into his chest. Louder than she had intended she incredulously asked "What even was that style, Kirito-kun?".

At that point, Asuna and the others came rushing over as well. Seeing the girls their glances, he quickly let Alice go and stand on her own two feet again. He sighed and composed himself a little. Before he proudly stated in a calm voice "Serlut Style, as taught to me by my mentor, Sortiliena-san". He saw both Alice and Asuna exchanging glances at that, although he wasn't really sure why.

* * *

Later that night, everyone had either already left or moved to the living room. "I-I can.. I can still drive Kiritaa-". Kazuto sighed as he supported his best friend on his way over to his bedroom. "You're going to sleep right here, Klein. Next time you don't get to drink". His drunk friend started complaining, but as soon as he dropped him face first onto his bed, he stopped. Moments later he could hear soft snoring. He sighed again. There goes his bed...

Returning to the living room, he found Shino laying on a couch, curled up with a large pillow and softly snoring like a cat. Alice and Argo were also watching her and they silently laughed together. Argo then carefully asked "Say... Kii-bou.. I eh, I can still catch a bus back home.. But it is like two hours away... Soooo...". He sighed in defeat when he saw her hopeful stare. "Fine, you can have the other couch".

The three of them talked for a little while, until Argo eventually dozed off on the couch. He and Alice chuckled for a bit and he was happy to hear she had actually really enjoyed the day, after Asuna calmed down, at least... While they were talking, he got some blankets to put over Shino and Argo and then sat back down in his cozy chair. It was the one piece of furniture he had insisted on buying for himself that didn't come with the lease; the large grandfatherly chair to sit in by the fireplace.

He had at first wanted to get a large rocking chair, like in his cabin with Asuna and Yui... But after trying a few out, it was a lot more uncomfortable to sit on than in a game... This had seemed more his comfort level and he was really glad he splurged on it. Damn, was it comfortable. As he started to slowly doze off during his conversation with Alice, he barely registered her moving until she sat down in his lap sideways.

He froze a little "A-alice?". Looking at those blue eyes, he just managed to notice the blush creeping over her face as she calmly said "Yes, Kirito-kun?". He thought about it for a few moments, but then just sighed and smiled "Alright then... but grab that blanket". She seemed a little surprised, but then smiled and got it. After which she calmly took her place on his lap again. He pulled the blanket over the two of them and they slowly fell asleep, Alice nuzzled up against his chest. _This wasn't so bad at all_...

* * *

The first thing Kazuto noticed as he slowly woke up, was the warmth of whatever was pressing down on his chest. As he groggily opened his eyes, he was a little confused to see only brightly shining gold. After a few blinks he instead saw Alice sleeping on his chest. Sunlight coming in from the balcony doors gently illuminated the girl's golden hair. He couldn't help but smile and stare at her for a few seconds.

Then he heard soft, teasing laughing "Oh Kii-bou... Head over heels, are we?". He chuckled to himself "Oh Argo...". He felt Alice stir a little as he heard her sweet voice groggily mutter "By Solus-sama keep it down...". As he softly laughed and poked her cheek she eventually opened her eyes. She blinked a few times, and then smiled happily at him "Morning, Kirito-kun".

At that point Alice suddenly heard Argo teasingly saying from behind her "Hmm... You make a cute couple, Ali-chan..". Feeling her cheeks redden, she looked to Kirito for support, but he just smiled at her with a slight blush. His eyes seemed to ask her 'wouldn't we, though?'. She couldn't help but smile back at him as she just buried her face in his chest again.

As they were all waking up, Ara got up to grab the gift she had brought for Kirito. Taking a deep breath, she gathered courage she had. She had still refrained from giving them her real name, and the others hadn't really objected. It was common practice after all among SAO survivors, even if they knew each other. But for her, she was just afraid what they would have thought about her book... These people lived through some of the most traumatic parts of the game, that were brought to the public because of her.

Still, she had decided she wanted at least Kirito to know... She waited until he was alone for a moment, Alice having stood up to change. "Kii-bou... I wanted to give you something".

As Kazuto was watching Alice walk away, still a little dazed, he was a little startled when Argo suddenly appeared next to him. "A-a gift?". He muttered a little surprised. She nodded at him with a nervous smile as she carefully said "I-It's what I've been up to I guess... Mostly. And I wasn't sure how you'd all react... But I decided that you should know, at the very least...". She handed him a small package, neatly wrapped up.

He thanked her, still a little incredulously, and carefully opened it. He found a book. A book that he had seen before, even browsed through a bit. Although this book had some extra text on the cover. The crimson red front had gold plated text reading:

"Don't Worry, It's Argo's:

All Records of SAO Incident

Kii-bou Edition

by

Ara Godai

[Cat Whiskers Icon]"

He stared at it in confusion. Was this an Argo's Guide, Kirito-themed version of the Records of SAO book? Then the gears in his head started to catch up... "Argo... You're Ara Godai!?". She smiled nervously at him and just nodded. He couldn't help but stare at her in shock for a few moments, but then he chuckled "Why didn't you add a pair of whiskers on the regular cover? Then I would have found you...".

She blushed, but quickly followed it up with a teasing grin "Oh Kii-bou... you always have to toy with a girl's heart...". As he started blushing himself now, she followed it up with a drawn out sigh. "Shame though..." she started slowly "It seems like you already found someone else...".

He started blushing and stuttering some sort of reply, but then his gaze was drawn by what Argo - or Ara.. - was cheekishly pointing at... Alice walking into the living room in a beautiful blue kimono. The oblivious girl gave them a curious look and carefully asked "is this not common clothing in Japan to wear in one's home...?".

While he was stunned for a few seconds, mind blank on what to say, Argo snickered and said "That's not it Ali-chan... I think you broke Kii-bou". She blinked a few times in confusion, then started blushing, but managed to still calmly state "Shouldn't surprise him that much, he did give it to me after all".

Kazuto felt Argo's questioning gaze, so he quickly cleared his throat and retorted teasingly at Alice her jab. "I didn't see everything we bought yet, that was quite the shopping spree". She pouted and stuck her tongue out, before joining Shino and Klein on the balcony. After letting out a sigh he turned back to Argo.

"Well... It's nice to meet you, Ara Godai. I'm Kazuto Kirigaya". She smiled at him and surprised him by diving into his lap for a hug. As he relaxed and hugged her back she softly said "It's really nice meeting you too, Kii-bou".

They talked for a bit, just general catching up. Until they heard Klein shout from the balcony "KIRI-DUDE, LET'S GO ANOTHER ROUND!".

* * *

It was just past noon when they managed to get rid of all their guests. Kazuto and Alice found themselves lounging on the balcony deck. After they had slowly been dozing off for a while, Alice had eventually gathered enough courage to quietly ask "What.. What did you talk about with Asuna-san?". he groggily looked down at her, as she was lying on his chest.

He blinked a few times then seemed to think about what the question was, before finally saying with a sad smile "I.. We just still had some things to talk about, but it should all be fine now".

She nodded slowly "Alright...". It took her another few moments, but then she steeled herself and looked up at his eyes. They looked back surprised. She cupped one of his cheeks with her hand and sighed with a small smile. "What.. What am I to you?" she asked him with a blush on her face, but in a steady voice.

It took him a moment to register what she was asking him. Then he started blushing too. He let out a deep sigh and said with a chuckle "You know, Asuna also asked me how I felt about you...". He saw Alice her deep blue eyes go wide for a moment, before she nervously asked him "...And?".

Kazuto looked at those blue eyes, that hopeful smile. He couldn't help but smile as he pulled her in a little closer and moved a few stray strands of golden hair away from her eyes. When her shocked stare soon turned into a soft smile with little tears in the corners of her eyes, he moved in to kiss her, and was met halfway by waiting lips.


	4. ARC1-CH4: A New Frontier

**Author's Note: **Fourth chapter is here! Thanks for the reviews, faves and follows everyone! Although I wouldn't mind it if some of you would put some story direction ideas in the reviews O:) This chapter is a mess... My apologies in advance! I rewrote it probably around five times... I've got around 25k unused paragraphs from it that I will hopefully be able to use at some point haha. I'm also deciding on what canon characters to use for this story. Essentially the entire main group could be used, but considering how big it is, I'll probably pick a few of the characters I like best. The focus will of course still be on Kirito and Alice. Feel free to leave a review or a message with ideas, suggestions and the like. And please, forgive me for the perhaps overly detailed fluff chapter!

I've also been considering writing a prequel series set in Underworld. Volume 20 of the Light Novels ended far too abruptly for my taste... The story isn't fully wrapped up. Although I realize that, seeing how there is no official English translation, most people might not have read Volume 19/20. Not to mention that they are side stories. Please let me know if it's something you folks would want to see, though.

* * *

Argo sat down with a sigh. She had picked the diviest bar in Arun to drink away her sorrows with something resembling whiskey. Even if it wasn't alcoholic. Seeing how welcoming Kii-bou's group had been of her, the next morning she had bought Alfheim Online. Deciding to once again feel confident enough to wear Argo's hood. She had almost picked Spriggan as her race, but the ears of the caith sith, as well as their Taming bonus, won in the end. After designing a character that somewhat resembled her Argo appearance, she suddenly found herself in the air.

She was gradually falling down to what must have been the Caith Sith capital city. As she was admiring the view, however, black pixels dotted out the sky in front of her, and she started falling. She let out a yelp, and suddenly crashed in a forest. Getting up with a dizzy head she looked around. Where the hell was she?

She opened her player menu, with the other hand as she had already learned beforehand, to check her map. When she did, however, she was drawn to the Skills menu. To her shock, most of her skills from SAO seemed to have carried over... As she was furiously skimming, she even found that all of her notes were still present. All of them...

Realizing this meant she had everything she needed to powerlevel herself through New Aincrad, she couldn't help but grin. But then she realized that her map gave her little idea of where she was. Where the hell was she? At that point there was a sudden and bright flash of light. As she shielded her eyes and blinked a few times, it had disappeared and left a small pixie in hovering in the air in its place.

The pixie girl smiled at her and said "Hello Argo-san! I'm Yui!". Argo stared at her in confusion for a few moments and said "Soo... You're like, one of those Navigation Pixies..? Why did you come to me?".

The girl pouted at her and said "I'm not just a Navigation Pixie, Argo-san!". Argo hurriedly put her palms up and nervously said "Oh eh, s-sorry Yu-chan.. So what are you then?".

The NaviPixie sighed, but then gave her a warm smile and said "In Sword Art Online I used to be EHCP001, Emotional Health Councelling Program, codenamed Yui".

Argo took a few steps back as she started muttering "Why... Are you coming after me?". The memories of being stuck in a death game started appearing again, but the NaviPixie tilted her head and gave her a curious look.

Then in an innocently sweet voice she said "Are you afraid of me, Argo-san? You shouldn't be, daddy said you're a good friend, and from his emotional output I could conclude that was true... Did mommy and daddy not tell you about me yet?".

Argo just shook her head carefully, still confused and said "I eh... No. Who, who are your mommy and daddy exactly...?".

The NaviPixie just giggled and spread her hands. A moment later another bright white light appeared, before the NaviPixie was replaced by a Human girl, maybe ten years old. With a warm smile she said "Asuna and Kirito are my mommy and daddy, of course".

Argo proceeded to dart around Alfheim all day, assisted by the cheerful Yui. She had been a little reluctant at first, but after having the girl explain how Kii-bou and A-chan became her parents, it all made a lot more sense. Not to mention that Yui had access to map data and seemed to have stored pretty much all game information... It was a literal gold mine for Argo.

Aided by her high levels, she quickly shot around the map to collect materials for her equipment. All the while making notes about everything Yui enthusiastically wanted to tell her. Eventually Argo felt a little guilty and asked "Am I asking you too much, Yu-chan?". The girl had given her a curious look, but then giggled "No it's alright Argo-san, I like helping mommy and daddy's friends! A few days ago, Klein even took me to a gamehouse to help him play card games and we won a ton of Yuld!".

Argo couldn't help but feel her whiskers stand up... The next while she spent talking with Yui about all the antics the group had been up to. Yui, innocent as she was... Loved telling her everything.

While Argo was enjoying her future blackmail material, she overheard a few players talking near them. "Yeah man, I'm serious! This new game just popped up out of nowhere. Overworld it's called". One of the other players continued after him "I hear Overworld has far more skills and options. And apparently, the NPCs and mobs are a lot smarter too".

Argo's imaginary whiskers started to twitch at that...

* * *

They had spent the entire day just enjoying life together. And they had taken every opportunity to repeat their kiss from the night before... Now, nearing midnight, they were sitting in their comfortable chair again, enjoying the warmth coming from their fireplace. He was just admiring the sight of the napping beauty leaning against his chest. After noticing his first reaction to her blue kimono, she had teasingly proclaimed to wear it almost exclusively whenever they were alone. At least the blanket that was pulled over them covered most of the distracting sight.

Thinking back to how cold she had been when he and Eugeo were first brought before her in chains, he couldn't help but chuckle quietly about how much she had changed. How much both of them had changed... Eugeo. Eugeo had been the one in love with Alice. And he died fighting for her. As that cold realization set in, he started asking himself. Was it really fair to do this? To have fallen in love with Alice... While he had only fought to get back home?

While his mind raced around darker thoughts, Alice must have noticed, somehow. She nuzzled up to his chest and hugged him a little tighter in her sleep. A small smile crept across his face as he was pulled back to Alice. He.. He loved her. It didn't matter anymore. Eugeo would have wanted them to be happy... right?

At that point, his television screen lit up and a ringtone started playing. A video call request from Klein. Alice partially woke up too now and groggily said "Kirito-kunn... make it go awayyy". He chuckled and did what she asked. Without realizing what would happen.

Klein appeared on his television screen with a worried look in his eyes as he began to say "Kirito! Why haven't you answered your phone all da- eh?". For a moment Kazuto assumed there was some lag in their connection. But then he saw Klein blink. And he realized that this was a two way video call. And Alice was lying curled up against his chest.

Speaking of Alice, she was slowly waking up - and realizing what situation they were in. For a moment, the two of them stared at each other. Not really sure what to do now, but then they heard Klein teasingly say "Well, well, well, Kirito... Well done! Although, Alice-san, you could've done better...".

Kazuto sighed as he tried to regain his composure a little. Alice meanwhile, sat a bit more upright and leaned into his chest. She surprisingly calmly asked "What can we help you with, Klein-san? Especially this late at night".

Klein chuckled and cleared his throat, before saying a bit more seriously "Well, it looks like there's an insane new VRMMO out on the web, completely free". After a few seconds of watching their puzzled faces, he continued "Argo overheard some players talking and she and Yui did some research. Apparently it's far more advanced than ALO. And get this, it's called 'Overworld'... Ring a bell?".

After a discussion with Klein, and the later joining in Argo, they had worked out that there was no credible information about who made it and who owns it. There was a level system, with a very familiar Skills tree in comparison to ALO. Most of the Player Menu looked somewhat the same, although it had gotten an update in appearance. And apparently, you couldn't transfer accounts through the Seed. Meaning everyone starts at the same level.

Argo also mentioned that from what people are saying, the NPCs seem to be much more intelligent than your regular NPCs. And because there doesn't seem to be a cursor over people's heads, people say its weirdly difficult how hard it is to spot other players.

Around three AM and after a long video conference with Klein, Argo and Yui, Kazuto and Alice eventually decided to just go to sleep and log in the next day. As the two of them went to his bedroom. He couldn't help but ask himself 'is this now our bedroom?'. He shrugged it away as his attention was pulled by the golden haired girl standing next to his bed. Lit only by rays of moonlight coming in through his bedroom windows.

Blushing a little, she turned her back and slowly took off her blue kimono. As it fell to the floor she turned towards him. A sweet and clearly nervous voice with a teasing undertone asked him "Are you... Are you just going to stand there, Kirito-kun?".

He did his best to keep staring at those glimmering blue eyes, instead of the frilly white undergarment covering her almost translucent white skin. So much so, that it took a few more seconds than he would care to admit before her question was processed. Somewhat having regained his composure, he started to take off his clothes. By the time he was done, the girl was already lying underneath his blankets, giving him an expectant stare.

* * *

The next morning, Alice woke up from a gentle melody being played in her head. One of the few advantages she could find in having a constructed body; the ability to set an internal alarm. She likened it to the alarm function in ALO, and it did make the real world a little less... realistic? Still, since she had shared Kirito's bed, she had loved using it. Why, you might ask? Because it let her wake up before him, and his sleeping face was just adorably innocent...

Leaning on his shoulder, as she had woken up, she was only a hand's distance away from her... friend(?)'s face. As she carefully shifted a little to wrap her legs a little more around him, she noticed he started to wake up. Quickly, she closed her eyes and pretended to still be asleep. She couldn't help but be a bit worried about his reaction. They had cuddled and kissed, but obviously her metallic body lacked certain... parts. And now, she asked herself 'could I really be enough for him, like this?'.

She could hear a cute yawn and a careful stretch. She felt him turn a little toward her, after which he pulled her a little tighter against him. She felt her cheeks redden, but managed to prevent herself from freezing up or outright yelping at the sudden movement. Luckily, he still seemed to think she was asleep. While she felt him stroke a few of her hairs out of her face, she could hear him silently sigh and mutter incredulously "What did I ever do to deserve someone so beautiful?".

Kazuto couldn't help but yelp as the sleeping beauty in his arms suddenly lept up on top of him and pinned him down. Suddenly jarred fully awake, he was staring into those cheekily gleaming blue eyes right above him, his own eyes wide as saucers. She teasingly smiled at him and said softly "Becoming a rebel and fighting your way up to the 80th Floor to save me helped, Kirito-kun...".

He sheepishly grinned and mused "Well... I suppose that was a little heroic...". The girl playfully slapped him on his cheek and pouted "Right up until you made me explode my eyeball, that is".

He stuttered a little. Remembering it had been so painful that she fainted... But then he also recalled what happened next and rebutted "But then I did carry you while I climbed the remaining floors alone". He was getting a little nervous upon seeing her blush and turn her head away.

But then she quietly said "When... When I woke up later, with.. with you above me and your eyes filled with so much worry.. for me.. I-I.. I think that was when I fell in love with you".

Alice realized what she had said only a few moments after it had come out of her mouth. Kirito was still pinned underneath her. Looking up at her with a blush on his cheeks and surprise in his wide eyes. 'I... fell in love with you'. She carefully repeated her last words in her mind. Almost immediately she got up off of him and sat on the side of the bed.

They.. They had kissed, and shared a bed... But they hadn't said anything like that. The same worries she had suppressed seconds earlier, came flooding back in. Slowly growing more nervous she just waited in silence. But then his warm arms hugged her as he came up to her from behind. She let out a sigh she hadn't realized she was holding and leaned back into his chest warm chest.

When he lovingly started stroking her hair she heard him let out a sigh too. After a few seconds, he quietly started speaking "I... I felt guilty ever since... Ever since then. Because I realized that... That Alice Synthesis Thirty... you, were a real person too. A-and I knew that when Alice Zuberg's memories were returned you would...".

He had told her. And Alice had never blamed him for that. It wasn't her body to begin with, it had been stolen away from the real Alice Zuberg, an innocent girl. And given to her, Alice Synthesis Thirty. She hugged his arms and snuggled up against his chest in an attempt to comfort him as she warmly said "I know, Kirito-kun... And I don't blame you. I... I would have gladly given this body back, it wasn't mi-".

She was cut off as Kirito cleared his throat quietly and interrupted her in the same, quiet, slightly hoarse voice. "That's.. That's not it Alice. At t-that moment, when you woke up and looked up at me with such... such warmth. I... I realized I would protect you. I-I wouldn't sacrifice you, I'd find another way. So you would both survive. But deep down I knew that was impossible. That's why I have always felt guilty... That thought was... was a betrayal of Eugeo, my brother. A-and Alice Zuberg...".

Alice was stunned as she looked up into his onyx eyes. They were wet with small tears and showed utter sorrow. After a few seconds she found it in herself to quietly ask "But... why? I-I'm not worth that. Why would you... For me?".

After a few moments, he turned his head slightly to look back into her eyes. He seemed to find some sort of determination in them, as a small smile crept across his face and he softly said. "I don't think I knew it back then, or even for a long time after that. But... But I do now. And now... I think that moment was when I first, truly fell in love with you too, Alice".

As small tears started to roll across her cheeks, she kissed the man she loved. He was surprised, but soon returned it. After a few seconds, Alice pulled away and hugged him. With a soft voice she said "Don't feel guilty, Kirito-kun... They knew you. So, they knew you wish to protect everyone. A-and from what you told me, they would both have helped you to find another way. A-and while I would have given up that body for the _real_ Alice Zuberg... It makes me really happy that you care that much for me... Thank you".

He looked at her with surprised eyes, but soon his lips formed a warm smile. "Thank you for saying that, Alice... I-I love you". She looked up to him and whispered back "I love you too, Kirito-kun". Before she moved in and met his lips with her own.

* * *

An hour or so later, after a short shower and breakfast, they found themselves cuddled up in bed again. After a last kiss, that showed a great deal of longing on both sides, he sighed and put on his familiar NerveGear. He looked at the girl nuzzled up to his chest. She gave him a warm, encouraging smile and whispered "Race you there, Black Swordsman". Right as she closed her eyes to upload herself to the servers, he chuckled and calmly said "Link Start". And the world turned black.

After being led through the usual start up sequence of checking the alignment between the device and his senses, he found himself in utter blackness. For a moment he panicked, but then a bright screen appeared in front of him. "Load Saved Character Data for ID: 'Kirito'? [YES/NO]".

Surprised, as his friends had said you couldn't transfer your accounts through the Seed, he hesitantly decided to prey 'Yes'. After a few moments, he was enveloped by a bright white light. Almost instantly, he found himself in a town square. No, a city square? He found himself looking around at the masses of people traversing the square and leaving and entering along streets leading there.

There were no cursors for NPCs, nor did he spot anyone who stood out as a player... But it was surreal how realistic the interactions between the various NPCs were. Some were loudly laughing and discussing their respective adventures, while others were running and weaving through the masses, trying to get somewhere quickly.

Then he heard a familiar voice behind him on what looked like a Teleport Monument say "K-kirito-kun...?". As he turned to look at Alice with a smile, his eyes opened wide in shock. Standing there was Alice, alright. Integrity Knight Alice Synthesis Thirty. In her trademark golden armour atop her elegant blue and white surcoat and dress, with a familiar sword hanging at her side. Her deep blue eyes and her familiar, long golden hair completing the picture took away his breath for a moment.

She looked at herself with confusion and then at him and carefully asked "W-what are you wearing... Kirito-kun?". He just then realized that he hadn't actually looked at himself. And he had loaded saved character data... As he looked down, his breathing stopped and his mind was pulled back into the past.

After Alice had escaped from Underworld, he and Asuna spent around two hundred years there, due to the time dilation. Seeing how their souls, or brains, depending on what school of thought you followed, simply did not have the 'storage capacity' for so many memories - most of those memories were removed using the STL device used to log into Underworld. Considering how this is not something with a lot of practice runs, they weren't able to accurately determine where the memories were cut off. While Asuna only remembered the first two months of their time together, he remembered almost a year and a half after the war. Albeit in parts and flashes. He couldn't recall all events precisely, but he remembered enough to form somewhat of a clear picture of what happened.

What he was wearing now, was his official uniform as Prime Swordsman of the Human Empire. A black and white coat with gold trimmings that was tailored to him specifically. Seeing how he did not remember ever wearing it with the gleaming, light metal Cuirass on his chest, it must have been saved data from_ after _what he last remembers. He felt a wave of memories flooding over him. The rebellion and consequent unification of the Four Empires, Ronye and Tiese... He was pulled out of his thought spiral as Alice put a hand on his shoulder and gave him a worried look. He cleared his throat and said "This... This is what I was wearing the last time I remember being in Underworld. As the Prime Swordsman of the Human Empire...".

[Author's Note: Look up Illustrations from SAO Vol. 19/20. He often wears the black/white/gold uniform there. As well as still having his sword sheath on his belt]

Then he audibly gasped as he looked down at his belt and with a shaking hand unsheathed the all too familiar longsword hanging at his side. A gleaming black blade, not made of steel, but wood of the Gigas Cedar - is what appeared. He just stared at the blade in his hands, unable to truly process what was happening. Then Alice softly muttered next to him "How... How did they get such detailed information about Underworld?".

Kirito could clearly feel the resonating blade in his hand. A barely noticeable hum that signified his connection to the blade's memory. The Gigas Cedar. He could see Alice inspect her own Fragrant Olive Sword in wonder and awe, clearly feeling the same hum in her own hands. He eventually cleared his throat and said thoughtfully "Well... From what I can tell, this world was not just named after Underworld as a publicity stunt... But they seem to have actual Underworld data...".

She gave him a worried frown and carefully asked "Do you think it's...". Seeing her trail off, he finished for her "Yes. Kayaba Akihiko has to be behind this. He's the only one I can imagine who could get such access. Not to mention we should have suspected something like this when Cardinal-san was transferred to ALO...". He sighed deeply.

As he was trailing off again, absentmindedly voicing his thoughts, Alice suddenly gasped. When he looked over he saw her eyes were wide and wet with tears. In her hands, taken out of her now open belt pouch, were two small Dragon Eggs. "B-but how... They were with me when I... When I left Underworld.. and are... are now in ALO". She slowly muttered incredulously.

Kirito walked over to her and hugged her tightly. Calmly he said "I know it must be hard to have them in two different worlds... But I think your data was copied, before you left Underworld. You don't have to hatch them if it's too weird. Maybe for now just store them back in your pouch".

After a little while she nodded and put them back, before quickly wiping her tears away. She gave him a warm smile as she quietly said "Thank you... It is still strange, the idea of virtual worlds and such... But luckily I have Kirito-kun to help me". He couldn't help but move in for a quick, but passionate kiss.

With a sigh of relief, the two of them found that, even though a lot was similar to Underworld - there was a Player Menu with an Inventory, Skills and a Log Out button, among other common options. Finding the Friends menu, they quickly added each other and noticed it functioned in much the same way as they were used to. There was however one menu option that quickly got both of their attention.

Alice was at first puzzled by the many dazzling options in her Player Menu, which seemed to be called 'Mystical Scribing' in Overworld. While it resembled ALO a lot, she still hadn't really invested too much time into understanding how it all worked. Mostly she just let Kirito explain it to her when necessary. ALO, however, seemed to work rather differently. There were all kinds of different menus, with a lot from the ALO version missing.

Upon hitting the 'Personal' option, she found something that shocked her even more than her equipment. She quickly noticed that her Object Control and System Control authorities she had meticulously trained up during her time as an Integrity Knight, were carried over as well...

'[Name: Alice Synthesis Thirty]

[Title: Integrity Knight] - [Tier: 3]

[Object Control: 70] - [System Control: 76]

[Order: Integrity Knight Order]

[Guild: None]

[Wealth: 304.590 S]'

With an excited gasp she said to the onyx-eyed man beside her "Kirito! Have you seen the Personal menu? My Object Control of 70 and System Control of 76 are both the same as they were in Underworld". Her love looked at her with admiration and said chuckling "That's pretty high, Knight-chan... I'm glad we never fought all out in Underworld". She couldn't help but beam with confidence at his praise and then asked carefully, truly curious to know how they compared "So... What are your authority values, Kirito-kun?".

As Kirito opened the Personal menu with some interest, he was wondering how all of his Underworld statistics would translate to game mechanics. He was a little shocked, to say the least.

'[Name: Kirito]

[Title: Prime Swordsman] - [Tier: 1]

[Object Control: 78] - [System Control: 82]

[Order: None]

[Guild: None]

[Wealth: 1.112.938 S]'

Something that seemed nearly impossible to Kirito, was his title. Was his character save data custom made? And how much was an S worth? It looked like he was insanely rich... He made a mental note to look into the how and why. Not to mention what 'Tier 1' meant. It took him a few seconds to say something, but then he carefully said "Well... eh. Before I tell you, you should realize that my data, judging by my equipment, was copied at least a year and half after the War...". She gave him a questioning glance and said "So? What are your authorities...?".

He sighed and carefully said "Object Control 78, System Control 82...". The wide eyed stare of shock he received was enough to make him feel uncomfortable. He never liked showing off... Seeing her pout a little he quickly added "But... I did battle and defeat Administrator and Vector... I mean, that must have raised both of my Control Authorities by quite a lot".

That seemed to calm her down a little, as her pout turned to a small smile and a sigh "Oh Kirito-kun... No need to make excuses. You more than earned your power, after all. Now...". She finished by carefully looking around "Shall we play this 'game' and determine how much of Underworld was stolen?".

Kirito nodded in relief and said with a teasing smile "Lead the way, my Knight-chan". She gave him a playful punch to the shoulder and sighed, before picking a seemingly random direction and hooking her arm together with his. Together they walked into a busy street of... the first city of Overworld. They failed to notice a short, cloaked individual watching their arrival, and carefully following after them...

* * *

After half an hour of searching through various shops, they had learned only a few things. Nobody really seemed to like them and was generally brief and to the point. Eventually, they found their way into a smith's workshop. An old man slowly got up a from a chair and walked over to his counter. "How might this old smith be of assistance, youngsters?".

Kirito calmly walked up to the counter and tried "Greetings, master smith, I am looking to buy a powerful, one-handed longsword and was wondering if you might be able to help me with that?". The man rubbed his chin for a few moments and seemed to inspect the both of them carefully.

"Well, since I'm not part of the Smith's Guild I'm not allowed to purchase any of the rarer materials... Best I can offer you is a sword with a priority of 32. Would that be high enough?". The old man asked carefully. Kirito frowned a little as he considered the 46 Priority of the Night Sky Sword, but then did his best to politely decline "My apologies, master smith, but I would be using it together with my current sword... If one is of a considerably lower priority, the blades would only damage one another...".

For a moment he cursed himself internally for saying something that would no doubt be too difficult for an NPC smith to handle - but then, to his shock, the smith frowned for a little while and hummed in thought. Then he carefully said "Well... If your current blade is truly so much higher in Priority, then perhaps you could acquire some rare materials yourselves in the Wild Lands outside the city limits. With higher quality metals I could fashion you a sword worthy of the strongest of Knights".

Alice just sighed as Kirito fell into a lively discussion with the smith about sword types and sheathes, before it spiraled off into the smith talking about his grand children. After thirty minutes, Alice suddenly noticed Kirito and 'Harold', the imposingly large and very old smith, had even started calling each other by their first names.

Eventually she herself hastily denied needing any new equipment while he bought a sword belt that allowed him to sheath his weapon on his back. She never truly understood why he did that, seeing how it is generally easier to unsheathe a sword from the hip, but it seemed to work for him nonetheless.

"So now what? Do we just go exploring outside of the city...?" Alice asked carefully. She noticed Kirito had spiraled into his thoughts during their walk, but then he carefully said "Well... Did you notice how... 'Real' that blacksmith was? He didn't seem to be like an NPC at all. I tried my best to get him to resort to an 'I don't understand the question'-response, but he quite naturally responded to everything".

Alice then realized she hadn't even thought about that, seeing how this place reminded her so much of Underworld it had only seemed normal. But she did understand that no 'game' should be able to be this advanced. She calmly stated "So that's why you kept talking to him about unrelated topics... I truly was about to pull you out of the shop with me". Before giggling a little.

He chuckled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck as he nodded "Yup... And.. Well, he liked me so I think he gave me a discount too! But seriously, this place reminds me a lot of Underworld so far, apart from the mechanics that clearly show this is a game. Such as the menu and inventory". Alice nodded slowly and asked "I do not see any quests like in ALO, so what is our goal if this is still intended to be a game..? Surely something similar to Underworld is in itself ill-suited to be a game".

Kirito thought about her words for a few seconds. What was their goal at the moment? They came to this world, appeared in a square. No tutorials were given, nor were there any quest markers... At that point Alice suddenly tugged his arm and pulled him out of his thoughts. "Hmm?".

As he followed Alice her intrigued gaze, he too now noticed a small crowd of Knights with a large variety of heraldry making their way out of the courtyard of a large, if simple building. "I believe that is a combat Academy. We should see if we could take a look around".

He was a little confused and carefully asked "Not that I mind seeing some duels, or even dueling myself, but why the sudden interest?". The girl sighed and said "Uhm... I know! Wouldn't it be wise to know how skilled the residents of this world are?". He couldn't help but see the logic in that and sighed. "Fair enough I suppose. Although I'm not even sure they'll just let us walk right in".

As the two of them made their way to the building in question, they noticed all of the Knights had already left. There was a large plaque next to the gate, reading 'East Caestus Swordsmanship Academy'. "I suppose you were right..." Kirito mumbled. Alice poked him in the side "No need to be so surprised...".

At that point they noticed a handful of kids gathered near the gate. They seemed to all be around fourteen/fifteen years old and wore similar, black uniforms that strongly reminded him of the ones worn at the North Centoria Sword Mastery Academy he himself had attended together with Eugeo.

As they casually walked into the courtyard, looking around at the buildings, one of them spotted them and hurried over. The girl, who had red hair and brown eyes gave them a quick bow. When she got up, she sounded noticeably nervous as she said "W-welcome! Are you here to attend the Exhibition Duels?".

The pair gave each other confused looks, but then Kirito hastily spoke up "Ehh.. Thank you! And yes, I suppose we are...?". Turning to Alice, it was clear she was excited. As a knight, he realized, obviously she would be interested in a display of fighting styles. "Greetings, I would be honored to attend the exhibitions!".

The girl gave them a hesitant glance, but then seemed to confirm something for herself. A few moments later she nodded and said "Alright then! I am Junior Trainee Ellea, please follow me". As the girl hurriedly made her way further into the courtyard, the pair followed behind her. Eventually they turned a corner around what appeared to be a dormitory, and found themselves on the side of a large training field.

As they walked over to the center, they spotted the previously noticed crowd standing in between three dueling fields. The girl escorting them said "My apologies, by my estimate over half the duels have already taken place. But I can still inform you on the remainder".

As they watched two of the duels, Ellea explained that these were all Senior Trainees and gave them brief descriptions of the participants. Eventually Alice asked her carefully "Is there a specific reason why these exhibition duels are held? Or is it simply to display the Academy's students?".

The girl gave her a strange look and carefully asked "B-but, are you not aware? These duels are held as displays for recruiters". Kirito, whose interest in the rather lackluster fights currently held soon faded, absentmindedly asked "Recruiters? For what?".

The girl seemed even more puzzled now "For Knight Orders, of course... I assumed you yourself were such as well, judging by your attire". She seemed to notice the amused look the two shared as she nervously added "I-I did not mean to make assumptions, my apologies!".

Kirito chuckled and tried to put the girl at ease "It's alright. We were interested in watching the duels, so if you don't mind, we would rather stick around anyway". The girl seemed to think it over, but then nodded "Very well. I... eh think regular spectators are allowed entry as well".

After another few duels, Kirito couldn't help but note how eerily similar these styles were to those of the Human World in Underworld. Although there appeared to be two clear distinctions. One style was focused around heavy, two-handed swords. While the other used a longsword and varying types of shields.

A little absentminded again, he asked "There seem to be two prevalent fighting styles among the students, are those the only ones taught at the Academy?".

The girl nodded and with a hint of sorrow in her voice replied "The two-handed style is called the Caestus Style, named after our city, of course. Only those of higher Tiers are allowed to practice it. While the other one is called the Delris Style. There are no restrictions on who can practice it, but it is considered the 'lesser' style".

Hearing the girl talk about 'Tiers', he asked inquisitively "Say, what are the different Tiers in Caestus exactly?". The girl gave him a weird look and carefully asked "You.. don't know about the Tiers?". But then she seemed to think it over and quickly added "But of course, you must have meant what titles go with what Tier! I heard those might vary from region to region...".

He shared a quick glance with an equally confused Alice, but then cleared his throat and tried to calmly nod. The girl then seemed to do her best to remember the exact details as her eyes narrowed and she started listing the tiers.

"Tier 1 is reserved for Royalty, of course, so the King and Queen of Caestus, as well as their children. Tier 2 is for the ones directly below them. The Knight Commander of the Royal Order and the General of the military... Tier 3, 4 and 5 are for high nobility, and 6, 7 and 8 for lower nobility. With 9 through 11 for various commoner standings".

As the two of them discussed the topic a little bit further, while Kirito did his best to avoid the subject of their own tiers, they eventually noticed a large portion of the crowd leaving. While there were still a handful of duels left to be held. "Why is almost everyone leaving?". His partner asked equally confused next to him. While he tried to rationalize it, Ellea explained it for them.

"Well, you see... The duels are held from highest to lowest tier of the participants. And these are the last ones, so generally very low nobility or common birth". Alice only quietly said "How sad, to judge one's talent by the status of their family...".

Kirito felt the same. But tried to cheer her up by pointing out the remaining recruiters. "I don't think I'd even want to be recruited by the high and mighty Orders that only care about status... There are still a number of them left".

Ellea sighed quietly and softly said to them "That's true. And while some of them are honorable, most could only be described as mercenaries. Few Trainees want to join them, as it usually means a quick path to death".

The couple both frowned at that realization. But seeing how there was little they could do, they continued to follow the fights. While some were... rather lacking in skill or talent, they were relieved to find that most of them were recruited by the 'more honorable Orders', instead of the ones she had described as mercenaries.

The final fight had only a handful of spectators apart from the three standing at the side. The two participants nervously took their places. As a referee gave the start signal, Kirito noticed the one taking charge was a girl, maybe sixteen years old, shooting forward with the simple Horizontal Sword Skill. He had noticed that, like in Underworld, most people here only knew the basic one-strike Sword Skills. Some of the better duelists had shown a single two-strike Skill here or there, but he concluded that once again his 'Aincrad Style' would be somewhat of an anomaly.

The girl participating was dressed in the same black Academy uniform, although he couldn't help but notice hers was visibly older. Several patches of slightly off-shade cloth could be seen. The longsword and shield she wielded were equally worn out. The blade had been sharpened and well-maintained, that much he could tell instantly.

However, the grip was old and a little tattered. The shield seemed to be repaired many times, and small dents and scratches still remained. It didn't look all that sturdy. He found it a bit odd. While there was a visible distinction in the quality of the Trainees their equipment, they were all essentially the same. Then why did this girl's shield look like it was pulled from the 'discarded' pile?

She furiously charged her opponent, her curious lilac hair trailing behind her. Her opponent, a boy around the same age, also wasn't wearing top of the line equipment. But at least his seemed to be capable. Not the same could be said of his skill. He was hastily blocking the incoming strikes with his shield, barely having been able to block that first Horizontal.

The girl had a clear advantage in skill, but as he had feared, her inferior equipment eventually betrayed her. The boy had barely been able to get in a counter-attack, but during the girl's cooldown after a particularly well-performed skill, he swung out with a Slant. His blade glowing a bright blue, it slammed diagonally against his opponent's shield. Normally, her shield would have absorbed the blow and allowed her to finish the duel with one more strike. And he could clearly see her preparing to do so, taking the stance for another Horizontal.

Her shield, however, did not absorb the blow. With a loud cracking sound, it very nearly shattered completely and she was pulled out of balance. While she crashed to the floor due to the impact of the skill, the boy stared at her for just a split second. Clearly surprised his attack didn't fail. And then he quickly put his sword up to her throat.

Seeing there was little left for her to do, he could hear a quiet voice mutter "I yield...". After the fight, Kirito had expected to find the recruiters very interested in the clearly talented young girl. Even though she hadn't won the fight, she was clearly the overall victor. The opposite was true however. They all crowded around her for a few seconds, but then quickly drooped off. The girl seemed very disappointed, and quickly left.

As Kirito and Alice slowly made their way back to the entrance of the terrain, Alice asked Ellea "Say, would you happen to know why that girl wasn't recruited? She clearly had ample talent". Ellea sighed a little and quietly said "Well... the last orders to remain are generally not too wealthy. So they require all their recruits to purchase their own equipment before joining. And... eh, Senior Trainee Halia is an orphan, she can't afford it".

As they rounded a corner, they could see a young girl sitting against the wall about a hundred meters away from them. While they walked to the gate, Kirito noticed one of the recruiters walking over to her. He put his hand on the wall above her and leaned in just a little too close for comfort.

The girl seemed a little startled but didn't get up. Training his hearing on that direction, making use of the handily available Search Skill, he managed to pick up part of their conversation. A young girl's voice said nervously "N-no, my apologies master Knight, but I have to refuse your offer".

The man had slicked back, greasy black hair and his greyish steel armour clearly bulged over his overweight body. The slithery voice gave Kirito shivers as he continued to listen in. "There's no shame in being a Knight's... Attendant. And if you work hard, maybe you'll even be allowed to join the Apprentice Knights...".

As the girl excused herself, Kirito was a little relieved. If she had accepted that... clearly suggestive offer, he might just have had to intervene. Making sure the 'Knight' himself didn't follow after her but also made his way towards the gate, he gestured for the waiting Alice and Ellea to continue.

"What was that all about?" Alice asked him a little confused. He just shrugged "It's nothing, really". Quickly changing the subject he asked Ellea "Say, where can we find some good food around here?". The girl seemed to think for a moment and then her eyes shot open, a smile forming on her lips "I know a tavern nearby with the most delicious honey pies".

Alice sighed as she saw Kirito's face glaze over. His eyes gleaming. He looked at her asking for permission. Scratch that, begging. She couldn't help but chuckle at how he could sometimes just revert to a little boy. She turned to the girl with a smile "Alright then, where might we find this tavern?".

The girl gave her a cheeky smile and said "I'll show you! For the price of one honey pie". Before she could argue, Kirito jumped up in joy and shouted "DEAL!". With a sigh she followed after the two, almost having to run to keep up with their excited pace.

* * *

Ellea had been a little nervous when the Instructors at the Academy had selected her to be a part of the group of students that attended the recruiters. Most of them were known to be very... handsy with their attendants, and most girls at the Academy tried their best to avoid such duties.

She had stayed a little to the side, preventing the spotlight and the need to pick a recruiter to escort. Halfway through the exhibitions, they had assumed all recruiters were present and relaxed a little. When those peculiar two strolled in, one of the others had pushed her forward and she had nervously made her way toward them. The woman's armour was expensive and very high priority... That much she could tell instantly, not to mention how beautiful she was. Almost radiant.

The man she was with seemed a little disinterested, and he wasn't wearing much armour, if any. So he probably wasn't a Knight himself. Was he the recruiter and she his escort? His coat looked expensive anyway... When they explained they weren't actually recruiters, she knew she had to send them away. But part of her was relieved as well, so she decided to just enjoy the free time. After talking to the pair, who were very familiar with each other and generally open to her as well, it hadn't taken long for Ellea to become curious.

They talked about unknown places and Styles. And they themselves were dressed in high Priority equipment. From what she could tell at least. The golden armour of 'Alice' stood out of course, but there was something about the man with his dark hair and onyx eyes. While he was only wearing a light chest plate, his coat seemed to project a feeling of power all on its own the longer she looked at it.

Now she was sitting at a table in the Portus Tavern, the closest one to the Academy and well-known for its honey pies. She was still a little in shock. She had warned them that they were five shears each, but Kirito just waved her warning away and proceeded to order sixteen honey pies. She stared at him with wide eyes, but Alice had just sighed and said "Always, Kirito-kun... And afterwards you always regret it, saying they aren't as good as the ones from Centoria".

As they were waiting for the large batch of honey pies to arrive, they enjoyed some drinks and talked a little about life at the Academy. They had seemed very interested in both the Styles taught and the Academy itself. She had thought that all Academies were more or less the same, but apparently they both had wildly different experiences, and the names of their Styles were unknown to her.

Alice had enthusiastically replied to her question. "I myself practice a variant of the High Norkian Style. Which was intended for two-handed swords, much like your Caestus Style".

Before Elleas could reply, Kirito added surprised "Honestly I never knew that. Your Style is so different from what they taught at the Academy". The blonde Knight gave her partner a slightly offended look, after which he quickly added "I mean that as a compliment, of course! The High Norkian Style is meant to be on display in one on one duels... Your Style is just a lot more fluent and flexible in actual combat... Not to mention that it is far more elegant".

Alice seemed to be content with the answer as the warm smile returned to her face, but then she sighed and admitted "And yet it's still essentially a dueling Style. Meanwhile, your Aincrad Style developed out of actual combat, thus being far more practical...". As Ellea was about to ask more about what the High Norkian and Aincrad Styles entailed, she noticed the Tavern door opening and a familiar figure walk in.

The lilac haired Halia, who just suffered a defeat in her exhibition duel... She couldn't help but notice how sad she looked as she shuffled her way down to the bar and collapsed on a stool. She was a little startled when Kirito suddenly asked "Hey isn't that one of the last duelists?". After steadying her breathing she quickly said "Yes, Halia! We're actually pretty good friends, so would you mind if I try and console her a little?".

Without skipping a beat, however, the black haired swordsman said with a warm smile. "Just have her join us! We've got plenty of honey pies coming up after all". She looked at him with wide eyes. Giving her one honey pie was one thing. But now they were inviting a friend of her as well? Most people kept to themselves, and especially the wealthier residents of the city barely spared the common folk a glance. And these two certainly didn't look like they were poor...

Eventually she managed to mutter "I-if you're sure... I don't think either of us could really afford it...". But she was stopped by the blonde knight, who quickly said with an honest smile and a chuckle "It's alright, my partner's buying".

* * *

She had been disappointed at how few recruiters were left by the time her fight started... While she knew she shouldn't expect too much, she had hoped to join the Fairwater Order. They weren't among the higher Orders, and she had heard they didn't seem to mind what one's background was, as long as they were skilled.

Sadly, their representative left two fights before hers. A little defeated, she took her opening stance at the start of her duel. But she noticed her friend, Ellea, with two strange individuals. A beautiful woman, with hair that would have appeared golden, if her actual golden armour hadn't shone even more fiercely. Clearly a Knight, she realized from her appearance.

The man who she seemed to accompany seemed absentminded, as if he was only paying a little attention to the duels. Still, if Ellea accompanied them, they must be recruiters... And judging by how her friend seemed to enjoy herself, they probably were nice people. That was enough for her to steel herself. If they were, she would need to give it her all. Show them why she was worth recruiting!

After her miserable defeat, all the left-over recruiters seemed to be interested, but most just asked about her curious appearance. After nervously confirming she was a half elf, they drooped off. The two recruiters with her friend weren't even coming over... Ellea shot her a worried look, seeming to say 'sorry', as she led them back toward the gates. Utterly defeated, she decided to get out of there.

Finding a shaded spot at the side of one of the campus buildings, she drooped down to the floor and silently sobbed for a few moments. She had almost yelped when she suddenly felt a presence hovering over her. Looking up, she saw one of the slimy recruiters near the end. His proposal to become an 'attendant' to him, was far from appealing. She was just glad he didn't insist as she hurriedly made her way back into one of the main buildings of the Academy.

After confirming the recruiter had left, she was sitting by the window of her dormitory. It was empty, apart from her, with most of the other Senior Trainees having been recruited. The remainder was probably out applying to Orders by themselves. But why would she? She was a 'filthy half-blood' after all. She checked her pouch and found, as she had expected, only about a hundred shears.

It had been the last of the money she had saved up before joining the Academy four years ago. Most of it was from her allowance at the orphanage she grew up in. Most of the others used it to buy treats or items. But she had always tried to save as much as possible, knowing she would need to pay the Academy's tuition and eventually buy equipment.

But she hadn't had enough to properly fix up her shield before the duel. The cheap blacksmith who had done the last repairs said it would hold for at least a few more fights... Not sure what to do anymore, she got up and decided to eat away her sorrows with a honey pie. Sure, they were expensive... But one every once in a while wouldn't be too bad. And she needed to cheer herself up a little after that defeat.

Slumping down on a stool at the bar, she had been a little startled when Ellea suddenly hugged her from the side. But then she couldn't help but hug her back. After a little while, she had calmed down a tad due to her only friend's comforting presence. Then Ellea asked her a little nervously "I made some new friends, I think, and they wanted to invite you over to our table... If you want to, that is?".

When Halia was about to reject their offer, she noticed Ellea point at those two people who had been at the duels. Seeing her hopeful glance, her friend carefully explained they weren't actually recruiters. With a sigh she had slumped back down on her stool, but after slipping that they had just ordered sixteen honey pies, however, she couldn't help but accept.

* * *

Kirito was too distracted by the arriving honey pies to really pay attention to the conversation. After exchanging a quick greeting with the Senior Trainee Halia, he started to devour honey pies with a passion. They were just... perfect. Almost exactly like the ones in North Centoria. As he reveled in his virtual lunch, he eventually noticed Alice smiling at him with a little blush. "What?" he asked carefully.

She laughed a little and teasingly said "You're enjoying them I see?". He stopped for a moment, looking at the honey pie in his hand. This was his... fourth? No, third. Probably. A little ashamed he looked at the two girls, sitting opposite them. They were each just finishing what must be their first.

He sighed and shrugged, before continuing with the one he held. He did however notice the two girls longing staring at the pile of pies. Not stopping, he just gestured for them that it was alright. The excited smiles on their faces as they immediately rushed to get another were enough to make his partner laugh again.

After a little while of silently enjoying their treats, there was one honey pie left. Kirito couldn't. He wanted to, but he just couldn't. He was stuffed. When he first started playing SAO, he had been utterly confused at how virtual food could be so fulfilling, but he had soon started enjoying it with a passion. Getting trapped in SAO had only made it worse. It had been one of the few truly enjoyable aspects of the experience.

He could see Alice and Ellea were equally stuffed. Slouched down in their seats. But when he glanced at Halia, he could see the hopeful glimmer in his eyes. But she clearly didn't want to take the last one... He chuckled when she glanced up at him. "It's all yours". She hesitantly moved in to take it, but seeing nobody object, she happily started eating.

Eventually he became a little worried again. Halia had been fairly excited while they were eating all those honey pies, but now that they were done she fell a little silent. While Ellea and Alice were discussing local sights, he turned to Halia and asked "So Halia, my apologies if I'm intruding, but I was wondering what you're planning to do now?".

She seemed a little embarrassed as she looked up and quietly said "I don't know... I could try again next year, stay enrolled in the Academy and hope to do better". Alice and Ellea had also started paying attention to them now, with the later putting a comfort hand on her friend's shoulder. Before he could say something himself, however, the girl quietly continued. "Not that it will matter anyway...".

Alice frowned a little and asked "Why not? You clearly have talent, and I'd say more than enough skill". Halia just stayed quiet, but Ellea carefully said "Well... Most of the guilds that remain at the end aren't very reputable. And as commoners our fights are always last".

The young girl sighed and continued "My parents have a small shop, but even I don't think they would be able to pay for the necessary equipment by the time I am up for my Exhibition Duel next year...".

Halia at this point had seemed to steel herself a little. He couldn't help but be impressed by the determination burning in her lilac eyes. This is the first time he noticed those were the same curious shade as her hair. Then he remembered who she reminded him of. Kizmel. Although without the pointed ears. Halia's slightly darker (than what seemed to be average in Caestus) skin colour was a little lighter than his old friend's, but she looked eerily similar, if a little younger.

"I'll just attend part-time the coming year a-and I'll find some employment to save up for the equipment. There are always some decent Orders left, if you've got enough to outfit yourself". She sounded determined, but there was a tinge in her voice that seemed to ask 'right?'. Ellea immediately said "You're right". Although she didn't sound too sure of it herself.

The whole situation pained him. He felt he should do something to help them, but what could he do... Oh. He was filthy rich! Or at least, judging by the price of honey pies. Glancing at Alice, she seemed equally concerned, and at a loss for what to do, so he calmly said "Well, we could sponsor both of you...?".

They both looked at him with wide eyes. Eventually Halia started stuttering "N-no, I could never accept that! That is far too much and you don't even know us... We already ate your honey pies too!". Ellea just nodded nervously.

"Surely not! And I think it would be a waste of talent otherwise". Alice retorted. But the girls wouldn't have it. Eventually Kirito sighed, rejected, and asked "How much would a full set of appropriate equipment be?". Halia looked glum as her eyes shifted down towards the table. She quietly uttered "W-well, maybe 5.000 shears, if you're lucky..".

He did his best to persuade them it was no problem for them to sponsor them, but the girls wouldn't budge. They just couldn't accept it. He shot a hopeful look towards the silent Alice. She realized what he was asking and seemed to think about it herself. Then she perked up a little with a satisfied smile as she suggested "Well then, how about you earn it?".

At the girls' their hesitant looks, she quickly added "Well... eh.. We could use some guides to show us around the city?". She shot Kirito a hopeful glance, who stuttered a little but then added "Sure. Might as well check out the town a little before we head out? If you girls known some interesting shops, I'm always up for item shopping".

He leaned back and started to think about what they might need. More to himself than to the others, he started "We could use maps of the area... Maybe we could find a shop that sells a high priority sword too... And I don't know if potions exist, but if they do, we're buying them..". Trailing off, he noticed Alice sigh and he quickly added "A-and I'm sure you need some things too...".

Slowly ticking off items on their shopping list, they spend a few hours letting the girls guide them around. They noticed quite a number of places that might come in handy later. From various shops to the Caestus Royal Bank. The Hunter's Lodge, a somewhat rundown tavern, was pointed out as well. Apparently it was where Orders would go to pick up jobs and assignments. Kirito made sure to make a mental note of that, a potential questing location is always good to know in a game.

The maps they bought confirmed that the entirety of Overworld consists of shattered, floating islands. They were currently on a central one, much larger than most. Kirito also made sure to stock himself with all the necessary adventuring gear, seeing how they had an inventory after all. He couldn't help but silently thank Cardinal-san for making Overworld a lot more like a game than Underworld...

Eventually they found themselves without anything to visit and the girls looked around a bit nervously as they were thinking about where to lead them next. Alice came up to his side and quietly said "Don't forget your body in the real world needs to eat too, Kirito-kun". He cursed a little under his breath. "You know, it feels so much like Underworld, I keep forgetting...". She gave him an understanding nod, but it was clear this was non-negotiable so they agreed to log out in two hours.

He sighed quietly and said to the girls "I think you've shown us everything we could need. Thank you, truly. This would have taken a lot longer without you". They nodded a little embarrassed, but looked happy nonetheless.

* * *

Halia had felt a little better about accepting so much money after having shown them around town. She knew it was still just a sham, but at least she felt sure they wouldn't ask them for a 'favour' later... After having spent some time with them, she could tell they were honestly just being friendly.

As an orphan with Elven blood, and with her Elven hair and eye colour, few people ever wanted to even talk to her. While it had been difficult, she had quite quickly after joining the Academy found a good friend in Ellea. The younger girl was always so kind. Such a shrill contrast to the more 'noble' students.

She was a little lost in thought, but when a male voice suddenly asked her "So Halia, where should we go for your equipment?" she jolted a little. She started stuttering "I-I eh... I don't r-really know any good smiths".

He seemed to be thinking something over for a bit, before a wide smile formed on his face. "I know just the place". The blonde Knight sighed and just said "Please, Kirito-kun, not there again... Last time we were there for an hour".

* * *

After a short walk they found themselves back at 'Harold's Forge'. As the four of them entered the man stood up and said a little surprised. "Kirito, back so soon?". Kirito shrugged sheepishly and said "Not for myself this time, though". He thought he noticed a hesitant look on the man's face at seeing Halia, but it disappeared as quickly as it came.

Turning to look at Halia, he could see she was a little nervous, but not sensing anything immediately wrong - he opted to ignore what must have been nothing. "Say Halia, did you have any specific equipment in mind?".

The girl soon confessed that she knew little about armour because they were only taught how to fight with their given weapons, armour was most often dictated by the Orders. "But that's mostly just the more esteemed Orders, I won't get into those anyway. So I could use some advice...". The girl blushed a little as she confessed that and Kirito couldn't help but chuckle at the prospect.

Alice sighed with a short laugh behind him "Now you've done it... There's nothing Kirito-kun likes more than selecting equipment...". He shrugged and said "It's not so often I can shop with my equipment. Especially this set-up...". He glanced at his coat and chestplate and sighed a little. He couldn't deny how high level the items were, but like every gamer the thought of new 'loot' always stayed with him...

It barely didn't register as he was thinking about old finds, but then he heard Ellea ask carefully "Alice I understand, but you don't really wear any armour, except for that chestplate...". He shrugged sheepishly and said "Well, that's because my fighting Style is based around parrying and dodging... A full, heavy set of armour would do me no good".

They seemed to accept it, albeit questioningly, but Alice supported him by saying "Sadly, I have to admit I never managed to beat him in a duel...". That seemed to perk the girls interest. A little embarrassed he turned to an amused Harold to start discussing Halia's equipment. Subconsciously, a smile crept over his face as he was shown around the shop's inventory.

While Harold was fitting a nervous Halia for the half-plate set he had picked, he heard Ellea carefully ask Alice "M-might I ask what Order the two of you are part of... It seems like an Order that I would like to j-join one day. If that were possible!".

Alice replied calmly with a Knight's salute "I am part of the Integrity Knight Order. Integrity Knight Alice Synthesis Thirty, at your service". The girl had wide eyes, but then seemed to frown a little as she said a little confused "I-I don't think I've heard of that Order, what part of the city are you in?".

Seeing Alice look a bit sheepishly to him for help, he cleared his throat and said "Well, we're not really in Caestus on official business. We're from... far away. The Integrity Knights don't really operate here". The girl seemed a little saddened by that, but soon asked "Are you an Integrity Knight too, Kirito?".

Before he could deny it, as he wasn't technically a Knight in Underworld, Alice proudly spoke up "Actually, Prime Swordsman Kirito is the head of the Council that the Order serves". A little embarrassed he stuttered "S-serves isn't really the right word... And I really only stepped in if there was a problem...".

At this point Halia interrupted them and asked curiously "M-my apologies, but does that mean you came through the Travel Portal?". Clearly reading the confusion on both their faces she carefully continued "The monument on the large central square? T-that lets people travel great distances...?".

Eventually after sharing a look with Alice, he sighed and said "I suppose so... Do you get many foreign travelers around here?". Halia seemed to think for a moment but then added "Well, some, sure... But the ones I've seen almost all looked like novices, especially recently. A-and they didn't have equipment like yours".

Kirito realized that 'recently' meant other Players. Probably... Sensing how this could lead to another 'Beater'-scenario, he sighed and asked Harold "That's... good to know. Do you happen to sell any cloaks?". He was relieved to find that Harold diversified his business... At least with cloaks they wouldn't stand out too much.

After Halia's equipment was fitted, it was time to pick her weapons. Remembering that Harold seemed to know of the Stacia menu and Priority numbers, he carefully asked Halia "So Halia... What priority Sword are we looking for?". A little nervous, the girl drew a familiar S shape above her hand.

He and perked up, seeing how one's stats are generally very personal. A small, slightly translucent and purple-coloured screen popped up in front of her. She nervously showed it to him. '[Halia] - [Senior Trainee, East Caestus Swordsmanship Academy] [Tier: 10] - [Object Control: 27] [System Control: 12]'. Alice also carefully came over and took a glance. They were both a little surprised that the Stacia window showed more than just OC and SC, but included name, title and tier.

He couldn't help but hum in thought. Tier 10... That's the second to lowest tier, meant for commoners. He would've guessed the girls were around the lowest tiers, but still, he felt guilty considering his own Tier. Upon seeing their glances he cleared his throat and quickly said "Judging by the Object Control alone, you would be among the top tier of students at the Academy I trained at". Halia's face noticeable reddened a few tints at his praise, and Alice supported him. But then after a little while carefully asked "Say Halia, do they not teach the Sacred Arts at this Academy?".

Halia stuttered in reply "O-of course not! T-they only teach the Sacred Arts to Mages". Alice was perplexed and incredulously asked "Then what if you are injured in a fight, is it not wise to be able to heal yourself?".

The girl carefully said "Well... I think they teach basic healing Sacred Arts after you join an Order, to help you during missions. While some Orders hire Mages to accompany them". Alice seemed to be a little satisfied by that, but Kirito couldn't help but ask curiously "So there are dedicated Mages in Caestus? That's interesting... I wonder if they are further along with the Sacred Arts because of that...".

He had asked it more to himself than to the girl, but she calmly replied "I have never seen a Mage myself, as the Temples take in very few students". Shrugging away the thought at the girl's questioning glances, he refocused on picking a shield and sword for Halia.

A little later, when Halia was looking in a mirror, awestruck by her new equipment, Harold startled him a little as he asked from behind him "Say Kirito, you came in here for a high priority sword this morning, saying you would use it together with another sword... Could I see it?".

Kirito frowned a little. He didn't want to attract any attention to him and Alice this soon into the game. Could he really trust Harold? At least he didn't seem shady. After a few seconds of thinking it over, he sighed and chuckled "If we can keep the details of it in this room, I don't see why not...".

Harold nodded understandingly and more than a little curious. Alice had an amused look on her face, while Halia and Ellea had stepped a little closer, also clearly interested. In a fluent motion he unsheathed his dark sword. Gleaming in the rays of sunlight streaming in through the windows. While Harold looked a little stunned, both girls gasped in awe. Eventually the smith cleared his throat and said "That is one magnificent sword. Does it have a name?".

With clear pride in his voice he calmly said "The Night Sky Sword...". Halia had taken a few, careful steps closer to get a better look. After a few moments she quietly asked "What kind of metal is that...?".

Kirito chuckled sheepishly as he handed it to Harold, who wanted to inspect it. The old smith almost dropped it due to its weight, but managed to stead himself. Meanwhile, he told Halia a little absentmindedly as his thoughts were pulled back into the past "Well, it's not metal at all actually. It's carved from the peak of a demon tree. The Gigas Cedar...".

Harold cleared his throat and said with clear admiration in his voice "This is a fine sword indeed, although I find it a little surprising you can even wield this, let alone one-handed...". The girls both looked in awe at the sword held by the blacksmith, so Kirito chucked and said with a smile "If you two want to hold it too, go ahead. Just be careful, it might be a tad... heavy. Maybe hold it together?".

The girls nodded a little incredulously, but then with the two of them carefully accepted the sword from the smith. The moment Harold let go, both girls tumbled forward. His sword landing on the floor with a loud thud, right on top of both of their hands. As was evident by the yelps of pain.

Feeling a little guilty, Kirito hurried over and sheathed his sword, before helping the girls up. Checking their hands, he was glad to see Ellea at least didn't have any cuts. Halia however, had a deep cut on the palm of her hand. Without really even thinking about it, as soon as he saw the drip of blood coming from the cut, he said calmly "System Call. Generate luminous element".

A small, glowing orb appeared slightly above his index finger, which he proceeded to hold against Halia's palm. The girl watched on with wide eyes as the cut quickly closed up. "Wow..." Ellea muttered next to them, before rushing over and inspecting Halia's hand. The owner of that hand was also looking at it, seemingly puzzled.

He carefully asked "Don't they use the Sacred Arts to heal wounds at the Academy...?". Both the girls just shook their lead slowly, before Halia muttered "Mostly just medicine and healing salves, I've never actually seen a Sacred Art performed up until now...".

Alice sheepishly laughed behind him and said with a teasing smile "why do you always end up impressing pretty girls, Kirito?". He felt his face burn up, but coughed and managed to somewhat calmly reply "I-I have no clue. But as the prettiest of those girls, shouldn't you already know?". With a satisfied grin he noted that Alice also started furiously blushing, while she shot him a warm smile.

As they were finishing up and preparing to leave, Harold slapped him on his shoulder and incredulously said "You sure are a strange couple, Kirito... This morning you walk in looking to buy a ridiculous sword and now you're outfitting a half-elven girl for the fun of it".

"Half-elven?" he asked genuinely confused. Harold gave him an equally confused look, while Halia seemed to freeze up. Carefully she turned to him and asked quietly "I... I thought you knew? Because o-of my hair and e-eyes...".

He looked at her a little baffled and managed to stutter a little embarrassed "O-oh eh, sorry, we're not from around here...". The girl looked a little saddened and carefully said "I-if that changes things I understand...".

"Why would that change things?" Alice carefully pitched in. Halia stayed silent, but Harold calmly added "Well... Caestus and the Elves were at war for decades. Even since the treaty a year or five ago Elves aren't really welcome. And well, Half Elves...". After a few moments he hurriedly added "Not that I share those feelings, of course", before he shot a genuinely warm smile towards Halia.

Despite Harold's reassurance, Kirito could see the girl start to shiver and clearly fighting to suppress tears from forming. He couldn't help but feel sorry for her. It wasn't her fault that she was born a Half Elf after all, nor should it really matter. He walked over and knelt next to her, to be on eye level with the shorter girl.

He waited for her to look at him and calmly said with a soft smile "Like I said, we're not from around here. And if I'm perfectly honest, part of why I insisted to help you was... Well, because you look a lot like a very dear friend of mine". She gave him a surprised and confused look, but then he chuckled "Her name was Kizmel. And she was a Knight. An Elven Knight, actually".

The girl looked at him in shock for a few seconds. But then she started to blush and a grateful smile formed on her lips as she quietly said "Thank you..". He smiled a bit sheepishly and nodded, before getting up again. They finished their discussions and said goodbye to Harold, before finding themselves out in the street.

Kirito turned to Ellea and said "Alright, since we don't know yet what priority equipment you will need next year, I thought I could just give you the same amount we paid for Halia's equipment". As he said that he quickly manipulated his menu and pulled out a sack with 9.500 shears in it. For a moment he cursed internally upon seeing the girl's shocked expression. He had just materialized a bag with money out of nothing...

But, to _his _shock, the girl mentioned nothing of the sort. Instead she slowly accepted it, with shaking hands. Nervously, she moved her fingers in the air in an all too familiar gesture, before the sack of coins disappeared. _Into her inventory_. Stunned, he looked over at Alice, who returned his shocked stare. Stuttering he asked the girls "A-are, you... Players?".

They only gave him confused looks, before Halia carefully asked "Players... Do you mean as in participants of a game?". He stared at them in confusion for a few seconds. But then cleared his throat and shook his head. "It's... No, never mind". He chuckled a little sheepishly and looked over to Alice. "Well it's getting late. We should... find a tavern room for the night".

Alice glanced at the clock in the corner of her vision and her eyes shot open. It was already 8PM. They had been diving for a solid nine hours. "Ah yes... We probably should".

Looking over at the two girls, their sad expressions were hard to miss. Ellea nervously said "We can't thank you enough for what you've given us a-and today was a lot of fun... W-will we see you again?". Halia just nervously nodded and gave an equally hopeful look towards the two of them.

As she looked over at her partner, she could see he was thinking the same as her. They weren't sure how long or often they would be playing Overworld... Nor if it was even safe. It made use of a lot of confidential Underworld data, after all. As they shared worried glances, eventually the both of them had a small smile on their faces. Chuckling a little, she turned back to the two girls.

"We don't know how long we will be staying in Caestus, but at least for the next few days...". Kirito couldn't help but notice that Alice seemed genuinely interested in spending more time with the girls. And he could understand that. Apart from his friend group, Alice never really had many opportunities to make new friends herself since coming to the Real World. Giving her a warm smile he added "We'll have some time this week, for sure".

At that point Ellea gasped and said nervously "Oh no, it's already past curfew!". The girls soon explained that as a Junior Trainee, Ellea had to be back at the Academy's dormitory by eight... Seeing her worried expression, Alice and Kirito soon decided to walk the girls back to the Academy, and hopefully take any blame coming her way for being late.

By the time they got back to the Academy, it was already a quarter to nine. Making their way into the Academy, they weren't stopped by anyone, to their relief. After entering the dormitory building Ellea slept in, they were just about to say their goodbyes, when a sharp voice startled them a little. "Junior Trainee Ellea, you seem to be late,_ again_".

A tall man with a stern face came casually strolling up to them. He had short, brown hair and wore a cloth uniform that resembled the Trainee uniform the girls had been wearing, although it was a more elegant white version instead. At his side, he wore a sheathed longsword. Ellea formally saluted and nervously stuttered "M-my apologies, Master Heldrom! I was a-asked to guide two of the Exhibition Day visitors around the city a-and I lost track of time!".

The imposing man raised an eyebrow and turned to Kirito and Alice now as if it were the first time he noticed them. They were both wearing the grey cloaks Harold sold them, hiding their actual equipment underneath. Kirito could see 'Master Heldrom' was inspecting them. Trying to ascertain whether the girl's story was true.

He gave a short bow and said calmly "My apologies, honorable Master Heldrom, I am Prime Swordsman Kirito and this is Integrity Knight Alice Synthesis Thirty. There was a lot in this beautiful city we wished to see and we lost track of time. I would consider it entirely my fault that Junior Trainee Ellea made it back this late".

He did not fail to notice that upon his bow, his cloak fell open at the front. Heldrom's eyes were pulled to the handle of his sheathed Night Sky Sword and for a moment he could hear an unmistakable appraising hum. "I would consider letting it slip, if this was not the fourth time this month that Junior Trainee Ellea seemed to have trouble keeping track of time...".

Ellea noticeably squirmed a little, but Heldrom calmly continued "Although I must admit, the two of you do intrigue me, _Prime Swordsman_. Not only is your title unknown to me, but it seems to indicate you are an accomplished swordsman, which is something I don't often encounter since I have taken up residence here... I would consider a one point duel against yourself, representing Junior Trainee Ellea, ample disciplinary action".

A little surprised, he carefully inspected Heldrom's face. There didn't seem to be any ill intentions masked in his words. He could hear Alice carefully say "Kirito..." behind him. And he knew they had intended to keep a low profile... But he was still a swordsman. And he had just been challenged to an honest duel. He turned to give her a calming smile, seeing her shoot an understanding look (and a sigh) back at him, before saying to Heldrom. "I would be honored, Master Heldrom. What self-respecting swordsman would ignore an honest challenge, after all?".

The instructor smiled warmly and seemed genuinely excited at the prospect as he said "Well then, considering the time, would tomorrow morning, say ten a clock, suit your schedule?".

* * *

After having said goodbye to a nervous and apologetic Ellea and Halia, the two of them made their way to a decent inn. The room they hired was a little expensive, but it was essentially the entire upper floor of the two story building. With stairs leading up to a private front door. Seeing how they were rich, they just hired it for a week. After logging out, he blinked his eyes a few times, and immediately noticed the warm and comfortable weight of Alice cuddled up to him.

A smile crept over his face as he took of his NerveGear and just played with her bangs for a little while. About a minute or so later, Alice her eyes opened and closed a few times, before she gave him a warm smile and snuggled a little closer up to his chest. Eventually he felt her stiffen up a little and let out a deep sigh. "I forgot to charge this metallic body again last night...".

Realizing she must have gotten an internal battery warning, he gave her a quick hug and said carefully "You know, you don't have to keep your charger in the other room. I think this is really now... Our room anyway. I-if you want to share it, at least".

The girl blushed a little and looked away as she quietly replied "It's still just very strange to me... A-and I.. I don't want to remind _you _that I don't have a real body here". He could only stare at the girl in his arms as he let that sink in, before he gently used his hand to turn her face back facing his. After pulling the blushing Alice in for a kiss, he just quietly said with a smile on his face "I understand. But please, don't feel ashamed on my account. I don't really mind, I'm just glad you're here with me".

Her surprised expression, turned to a deeply grateful one as she blushed and pressed her lips against his again. Quietly she muttered "Always so sweet, Kirito-kun..." as she nuzzled up to him again. After a while they got up, and realized they s_hould_ inform dr. Koujiro about Overworld. Alice, to his surprise, happily insisted to cook for him, while he made the call. Saying her limited technical know-how of computer systems wouldn't be useful anyway. A little awkwardly, she accepted the extension cord that would let her move around the kitchen a bit more. She again looked a little nervous, but he did his best to comfort her.

As his... _girlfriend?_ started making something in the kitchen, he made a video call to Koujiro. When she answered he found her sitting in her office at RATH. She looked up from her paperwork with a wry smile and said "Ah, Kazuto-san, how is your vacation going?". He smiled back and replied honestly "Good evening Koujiro-san, my apologies for the late call. It's going great, actually. Alice really seems to enjoy being away from the RATH offices".

She nodded warmly, her expression softening a bit. But soon it returned to the same wry smile and worried eyes. After a sigh she said "I suppose you're aware of this new game that popped up, Overworld?". He nodded carefully "And concerned as we were, we explored it for a bit today... It is eerily similar, but yet still clearly meant as a game, considering the HUD and menu's at least".

They discussed it for a bit and Koujiro explained the MRAS has investigators trying to identify who's hosting the game, but so far they hadn't been able to break through the encryption. When he mentioned his and Alice her save data was available, as well as the time frame he guessed they were from, she froze up and carefully said "Then this has to do with... him, again. Perhaps this is connected to Cardinal-san from Underworld transferring to Ymir's servers... We'll keep in touch, Kazuto-san, I have some calls to make".

After a short goodbye and scheduling another call for the next evening, he sat in his chair. Thinking about what Overworld could mean. Was it really meant as a next-generation VRMMO? If Kayaba is behind it, it has to be something more... Light shudders ran along his spine as memories of SAO sprung up in his mind.

At that point, however, his television rung again. Yui was calling him. A warm smile pulled across his face as he answered "Hey Yui!". The happily laughing young girl sitting on the couch in his and Asuna's log cabin waved excitedly and said "Heyy Daddy! I spent all day with Aunt Argo again and we had so much fun!".

He couldn't help but nervously laugh at that idea. Just now he realized how _much_ his daughter knew... Argo could easily have gotten a fair amount of embarrassing stories out of his sweet and naive daughter. Letting out a short sigh he smiled and talked about his day and gave her an update on what they discovered in Overworld. With wide eyes she asked him "Daddy, could I maybe come to Overworld too?".

He frowned a little and carefully said "I'd like to take you there, Yui, but... I don't know what the game will recognize you as. So it might not be safe for you. There is pain and bleeding after all...". She gave him a pained expression, but admitted "You're right Daddy... But I am going to try and find out if it could be safe from the outside!".

He let out a chuckle at his daughter's enthusiasm. "Alright then Yui, but remember; no logging in until we talked about it again. Your mother and I couldn't stand to lose you". Her expression turned to her innocent, beaming smile again. Giggling she replied "Thanks Daddy, really!".

They talked a little more, but eventually Alice nervously announced that dinner was served. He chuckled and said goodbye to his daughter, before making his way over to the dinner table. Clearly nervous, she presented him with a plate of deliciously smelling food. He smiled warmly at her as he anxiously took a bite from the stew. Instantly the flavour kicked in and he couldn't help but let out a soft moan. As the spicy aftertaste kicked in, his eyes subconsciously closed. It was _just the right amount of spiciness_.

With small tears forming in the corner of his eyes, from appreciation or heat, he wasn't even sure, he slowly turned to face Alice. The girl was giving him a nervous look and seemed to carefully wait for his reaction. "It's amazing, Alice... I don't know how you could possibly balance the spiciness this well without even tasting it...".

She blushed deeply and beamed brightly at his praise and chuckled nervously "Well, during those six months near Rulid, I-I tried to vary what we ate, but there was this stew recipe that Selka brought me and it seemed to be your favourite... So... I just did my best to make that again". He gave her a quick kiss, which she happily reciprocated, and continued eating his delicious meal. That night they decided to stay in the real world. After a long bath they retired back to their bedroom and snuggled up together as they fell asleep.

* * *

**Author's Note: **What do you think about the Player-NPC-angle? Apologies if you recognized Halia from my other story, but considering how only a handful of people read that one, I thought I might as well incorporate a few things I feel good about!


	5. ARC1-CH5: Silky Woods

**Author's Note: **Hey folks, sorry for the delay in the publishing of this new chapter. I was a little hesitant as to what approach and plotline to follow for the Overworld arc, but I think this should be a decent start :) As always, feel free to let me know what you think through reviews or messages!

* * *

When Ellea greeted the two of them at the front gate of the East Caestus Swordsmanship Academy the next morning they couldn't help but notice how nervous the girl seemed. After guiding them to the sparring hall, they realized why. There were six sparring duels between trainees taking place. With several dozen more cheering them on from the stands. Overseeing the matches were Master Heldrom (surprisingly, in full plate armour) and judging by their attire, three other instructors.

Upon the three of them entering the training hall, Halia came running up with a nervous smile and greeted them. It wasn't lost on Kirito how several of the trainees in the stands shot questioning glances their way. As the four of them walked up to the side of the of the sparring fields, Heldrom gave them a nod, acknowledging their arrival, while signifying he had to oversee the duels first.

After the decent, if simple, duels were completed, the trainees waiting for their turn were told by the other instructors to wait. Heldrom made their way over to them as he smiled "Ah! Welcome to our humble sparring hall, Prime Swordsman Kirito and Integrity Knight Alice. My apologies for the delay, but these sparring duels were already scheduled".

Internally he cursed at how loud Heldrom was speaking. More than a few curious gazes were pointed in their direction from the present trainees. Somehow he managed to calmly reply "Not a problem, of course, Master Heldrom. Should we get started?". The older man chuckled and gestured for him to follow. While quickly storing the cloak he had been wearing not to stand out, he followed him to the center of the hall.

Ellea had barely been able to sleep that night. The challenge of Master Heldrom, head of the Academy and former Royal Knight, had come as a surprise. She had really just been expecting to get some extra duties for the coming week, and that would have been fine. She had had a very enjoyable day with Halia and their new friends, after all. Before she was able to protest, however, Kirito had already accepted the challenge. As they said their goodbyes, he even seemed to look forward to it!

That morning she had panicked a little when noticing the large amount of trainees sparring in the normally deserted training hall at this time of day. Seeing all the Academy's swordsmanship instructors present made her realize that Heldrom had wanted there to be plenty of spectators... The worried glances she exchanged with Halia next to her, didn't escape Alice her attention however, as she felt a comforting hand on her shoulder as the golden haired knight calmly said "Don't worry, Kirito is more than up for the challenge".

She quickly turned her gaze towards the ground as she nervously replied "I don't doubt his abilities, b-but Master Heldrom used to be a Royal Knight! I've never seen him duel before, but everyone knows he is skilled. He is the headmaster of the Academy after all...". Completely contrary to Elleas her own worried self, Alice just chuckled.

"Then perhaps this duel may be more entertaining than I expected". If Alice noticed their shocked faces, she didn't let it show as she just calmly crossed her arms over each other and patiently awaited the start of the duel. Also focusing her gaze back in front of her, she couldn't help but feel a little more at ease when Kirito drew his longsword. The weight of it still fresh in her mind from the day before.

The crowd seemed a little confused at the oddly coloured blade. More gasps could be heard when the fully plate armour-clad Heldrom unsheathed his own sword. As the girls were quick to point out to Alice, since Master Heldrom came to the Academy, he has never actually dueled anyone. Not in plain sight at least... His blade shone with a slight bluish tinge. It wasn't overly fancy, but instead clearly displayed being of a high priority.

The large, two-handed blade elegantly swung into an offensive stance. Kirito took a moment to appreciate his opponent. His stance was confident, but not over-confident like Elite Disciple Levantein. It was clear that the older man was or still is a Knight, with actual combat experience. With a soft smile, he took a stance he rarely used. The strongest opening stance of the Serlut Style...

As soon as another instructor gave the signal, Kirito dashed forward, but was taken aback a little by the speed at which Heldrom shot towards him as well. Few two-handed sword techniques he had ever seen revolved around speed... Just in time, he managed to parry the heavy blade coming for him in a diagonal slash. He had chosen to use the Serlut Style mainly because he didn't want to expose his more unique Aincrad Style, but now he was glad that he picked the two-handed style... With just one hand, he would not have been able to parry it at all.

Gritting his teeth, but with a smile on his face, he steeled himself while Heldrom let loose a torrent of fast, two-handed strikes. It wasn't often he was actually challenged in combat, let alone against another player... Or.. well, not a player. But an AI... He had to remind himself, but quickly shrugged off the thought as he parried yet another strike that reverberated throughout his arms. He couldn't let his first opponent in Overworld beat him... Damn it, Alice was watching after all! Faster... He needed to be faster!

"Oh wow, he's keeping up with Master Heldrom! Is this the Aincrad Style you were talking about yesterday, Alice?" Halia asked in awe. Alice chuckled and softly said "Hmm, no, Halia. This is actually the Serlut Style. One that he picked up from his mentor at the Academy, Sortiliena Serlut".

The girls both gave her curious looks, but before being able to ask anything, their focus was drawn back to the duel in front. Kirito, instead of actively blocking and dodging, was now gracefully dancing and whirling around incoming strikes, before shooting behind Heldrom and unleashing fast, two-handed strikes himself. The older man was just able to raise his sword in time to catch his slashes, but seemed visibly taken aback by the sudden speed of his opponent.

Using several wide slashes to make him jump backwards, Heldrom laughed softly as he said "This is quite the fight, Prime Swordsman! Not only have you weathered all my attacks, you almost managed to get the better of me there...". Kirito just smiled back and calmly said "My compliments to you as well, Master Heldrom. It seems your talents have been refined in actual combat, most unlike the instructors at the Academy I myself attended".

Heldrom nodded appraisingly and said "Your own style is peculiar, to say the least... But I don't get the feeling your heart is in the motions, Prime Swordsman. Perhaps you're holding back? In any case, as a Royal Knight of Caestus, I will not lose this bout. Let's end this!". Before he took the opening stance for the Horizontal Arc Sword Skill, although it was undoubtedly renamed here, much like the skills in Underworld.

Upon seeing the stance take effect, and the large, two-handed sword taking on a bright, dark blue glow, Kirito could feel something else. Faint, blue flames started to erupt from Heldrom's blade, an aura of righteous fury burning around it. Realizing this was caused by Incarnation, the art of fueling your attacks with the power of... essentially you're imagination, he knew he couldn't just use a standard skill. He focused on what he was fighting for as he flicked his eyes over to the stands for just a fraction of a second, meeting her gaze- and a smile crept over his face. He could hear Heldrom kicking off of the ground and shooting towards him with the first of two strikes that are part of the Horizontal Arc.

"Why is Kirito just standing there!?" Halia almost shouted incredulously. She had only seen the Caestus Style secret move 'Righteous Cleaver' once or twice before in high level demonstrations between the other instructors. It was an almost deadly finishing move, that none of them could ever truly defend against...

Then, right before being struck, Kirito whirled in place, taking the opening stance for... for what? Halia had never seen a technique that started like that. His black blade, which had seemed a little too short to use two-handed, almost seemed... to... grow? Having a firmer grip on the blade's handle, it almost instantly shone an almost blinding green light. While Halia, Elleas, Alice and most others in the stands behind them did their best to keep watching as they partially shielded their eyes, a resounding clang of metal nearly deafened them.

The two, now equally long, two-handed blades collided on the first strike of Righteous Cleaver. They stood there, wind billowing Kirito's jacket. Wind that they at the edge of the hall could still feel rushing past them. The sheer force of the two of them being enough to cause it... But only for a split moment, before Kirito seemed to pull back, letting Heldrom's blade unceremoniously slip into its next position for the second strike. Before it could actually move again, however, the still brightly green shining blade of Kirito slammed against it, pushing it back.

Heldrom was clearly struggling. Sweat was glistening on his forehead, illuminated by the green glow of Kirito's sword. His own blue glow was starting to falter... Halia could just make out Kirito's face. His lips formed a small smile, while his eyes seemed to burn with a yellow light of their own... But that must just be her imagination... Right?

Right when they could see Heldrom freeze up as his own technique was cancelled out and his sword lost its blue glow, Halia expected Kirito to also freeze in place. But to her, and most of the attending crowd's shock, he simply pulled back and unleashed another strike, his weapon's blue glow not faltering for a second... A three strike technique!? Halia asked herself incredulously. That blow was powerful enough to slam Heldrom's blade out of his hands and it went flying to the edge of the hall where it harmlessly lodged itself into the wooden wall with a resounding clang of metal.

After following the flying blade, they almost missed another shocking development. A fourth strike... As the literal and figurative dust settled, Kirito was standing in front of Heldrom, his blade somehow having shrunk back to its former size, the green glow finally starting to fade, as his sword's tip lightly touched the shocked Master Heldrom's throat.

It took a few seconds, but then the instructor seemed to clear her throat and with a shaking voice declared "P-prime Swordsman Kirito wins!". Several seconds passed, before the crowd erupted in loud applause and chatter. Kirito casually sheathed his blade. The older Knight in front of him still looked stunned, but then exchanged a formal bow with him, before saying "That... Was unlike anything I have ever fought or seen before, Prime Swordsman. I suppose the world is larger than even an old Knight would know".

Kirito chuckled sheepishly and replied "Don't sell yourself short, Master Heldrom! I myself have... traveled extensively, and apart from my partner, I haven't encountered any two-handed sword wielders with such speed behind their strikes, especially in full plate armour. It was an exhilarating fight".

The older Knight seemed to graciously accept the compliment, but then said with a hearty laugh "I would very much like to discuss our Styles at a later date, perhaps tomorrow, the same time? Can't fault a Knight for being intrigued at such extraordinary swordsmanship, can you?".

Kirito couldn't help but chuckle in agreement and reply "I believe that would be possible, although I would need to check with my partner first. In any case, we are not from Caestus... So you might be able to answer some of our questions as well, Master Heldrom. If that is not too much trouble?".

The older Knight happily agreed and said his goodbyes, returning to guiding the sparring duels. As Kirito let out a satisfied sigh, he turned to find Alice, Halia and Ellea walking his way. The former with a warm smile, the latter two looking starstruck. Surprising him with a welcome, if uncharacteristic public display of affection, Alice gave him a loving kiss, before returning to her more stoic Knightly expression.

A bit flustered, he chuckled and asked her "H-how about an early lunch?", which the golden haired girl received with a happy nod and smile. He turned to the two girls, who were still stunned as they stood next to them "Would you care to join us?".

* * *

Ellea sadly had training that day, so she stayed behind. About half an hour later, the three of them had taken seats on a small terrace not too far from the Academy and had ordered some food. Once again it took some convincing to let him pay for Halia as well, but eventually she nervously accepted.

Alice and Halia had unequipped their armour for comfort and he couldn't help but be distracted by the sight of Alice, with her flowing golden hair draped over her blue and white surcoat and dress. A little flustered, he noticed she clearly took note. And gave him a teasing smile, if with a slight blush of her own. Eventually Halia carefully asked him "That was an incredible fight, K-kirito... I have never seen such a technique, the Serlut Style must be powerful...".

He chuckled sheepishly and said "Well, as my mentor explained it to me, her family was not allowed to use the more noble High Norkian Style because of some transgression they made generations before. So they developed their own style, meant to counter the High Norkian one. Seeing how the Caestus Style closely resembled it, I thought it might make a decent strategy".

While Halia was soaking up his words with interest, Alice chuckled and said "And yet you finished with an Aincrad technique, Horizontal Square if I'm not mistaken?". Even though they had never discussed the 'secret techniques', or Sword Skills of SAO/ALO, he wasn't too surprised that Alice had studied it herself.

"Master Heldrom had plenty of practical combat experience and extraordinary speed, something the Serlut Style is not made to counter. A little improvisation goes a long way I suppose...".

He noticed throughout his following discussion regarding styles and sword skills with Alice, that Halia was building up the courage to say something. Seeing her look somewhat ready, he calmly asked her with a warm smile "Yes, Halia?". The girl looked a bit flustered, but then with more resolve asked "W-would it perhaps be possible for me to study under you for a while?".

Upon seeing the pondering gazes of Alice and Kirito meet, she quickly added "I know I'm... just a trainee, but your style is unlike any in Caestus. A-and it might help with my being recruited into an Order, despite my... heritage". It was clear she felt shame while nervously averting her gaze.

He still wasn't really sure how to respond. Considering they were in Overworld not to just play a game, but to investigate... And yet he couldn't help but be reminded of his own apprentice, once upon a time. She had been so eager to improve upon herself, and prove her worth. And he saw much the same potential in her as he did in Halia. Alice put a warm hand on his and calmly said "She reminds you of Ronye, doesn't she?".

Barely having noticed how his own mood had darkened a bit, reminiscing about his long dead friends, the warmth in Alice her eyes seemed to lift him up. After calming down a bit, and a deep sigh, he turned to Halia with a small smile and said "Well... As we said yesterday, we're not really sure how long we'll be staying in this area.. But we were planning on exploring the Wild Lands a bit after this, you could join us...?".

Checking to see if Alice even agreed, she just shot him a shrug and a smile "We're not quite sure how dangerous the Wild Lands can be, but I'm confident we'll be able to protect her if things take a dire turn". Meanwhile Halia had nervously been eyeing the both of them. It took her a few seconds, but then she enthusiastically agreed with a wide smile on her face.

* * *

After finding their way out of the city of Caestus, into what the locals referred to as 'the Wild Lands', they stopped to admire the sight. Now, without the hundreds of buildings and tall walls clouding their vision, they had a beautiful view. Caestus seemed to be located on a massive, floating island. While they couldn't see for themselves whether it truly was floating, judging by the many floating islands in the sky and on the horizon as well as the maps they bought, they probably were on one too. Many of the floating islands, including what they could see of the central one they were on, had vast mountains and dense forests.

They were stunned for a few seconds as they just took in the sight. "This... Is a lot different from Underworld..." Alice softly muttered. Kirito next to her nodded slowly, still in awe and added quietly "Although, it's going to be a pain to get around... I can see a few bridges between some of them... But most of them seem to be free floating. And we're Humans here, not fairies with wings like in Alfhe...".

Alice wondered why Kirito suddenly trailed off, but then she noticed what he was looking at. Almost straight above them, a large, looming shape moved out of the city. It took a few moments before she realized what it was. A ship... A wooden sailing ship. They had no oceans or seas in Underworld, so Alice had been in awe when she was shown a variety of sailing ships by Kirito and his friends in ALO, but this... This thing was massive. And it was flying through the air.

The two of them just watched in awe as the two-mast 'airship' flew over them and departed heading west. Eventually Kirito asked, with clear hope shining through his voice "Should we buy or rent an airship...?". Alice sighed and frowned for a bit "Maybe... Or we hatch and train Amayori and Takiguri..".

He shot her an understanding glance and calmly said "You don't have to if you don't want to. Really, Alice". She took a deep breath, but then just smiled at him and calmly replied "No, I... I think I want to. And if this game is truly safe, I think I'd like spending more time here".

Kirito gave her a curious look and carefully asked "Why here specifically, and not ALO? Because it reminds you of Underworld?". He didn't fail to notice the blush creeping over Alice her face as she nervously looked at the ground in front of them. After a few moments, he put his arm around her and hugged her a little as he calmly said "You don't have to tell me, Alice, but you know you can, right?".

She hugged him back and buried her face into his chest. After a few deep breaths he heard her quietly say "We'll talk about it tonight, alright?". He just patted her head in response and gave her a quick kiss on her forehead, before the two of them went ahead and caught up with the enthusiastic Halia.

After two hours of walking along a dirt road without encountering so much as a trader, let alone anything to fight, Kirito was getting bored. "So Halia, I take it that most of the Wild Lands close to Caestus aren't exactly all that 'Wild', am I right?". The girl turned around and nodded "There are some creatures and dangerous animals, but most only come out at night".

A little confused he asked "Sooo... This might be a stupid question, but if there isn't that much danger around here, why are there so many Orders? Are they all just waiting for war?". Halia gave him a strange look and carefully replied "Well, I haven't done it myself, of course, but there are contracts that can be fulfilled that offer rewards. The more or the higher the contracts fulfilled, the higher the rewards for an Order". He hummed a little as he cursed himself internally for leaving the town without picking up any 'quests'...

He gestured for the girls to pause for a moment, while he took out one of the maps they had bought. According to the map, there were several smaller islands, floating a little lower next to the Caestus Island that weren't too far away from them. Those would probably be a little more challenging. But how would they get there without transport? It's not like hatching dragons and growing them to the size of mounts would be that quickly. If only they could get a better overview of the area...

He sighed deeply and said "I suppose we better just hire a small airship or something and make for one of the 'wilder' islan-". He froze as he realized something. He and Heldrom had used Incarnation during their fight... So could he...? Alice raised an eyebrow and gave him a worried look "Kirito, everything alright?".

He almost giggled, but managed to twist it into a more manly chuckle as he said "I suppose not... Because it's taken me this long to realize we don't necessarily need an airship to get from island to island...". Alice sighed a little and said "You know Amayori and Takiguri haven't hatched yet, right?".

He grinned from ear to ear before taking a few steps back. He calmly stated "Remember that final battle with Vector?". His partner frowned a little and started saying "Yes, of course Kirito... That fight was terrifying to wat-". Then she froze too, before her eyes widened. "Are you going to do what I think you're going to do...?".

Halia stared at both of their faces in confusion and carefully asked "My apologies, but what are you two plann-". Before she could finish, she yelped "What is happening!?". Even Alice took a step back as Kirito closed his eyes and moments later the hems of his coat started to shimmer and move. After a split second, his coat had transformed into two large, feathered black wings protruding from his back. "Aaah... I've missed my wings...".

Alice chuckled and shook her head before deeply sighing "You really do like showing off, don't you?". He just shrugged and gave his wings a few test beats. "Well, everything seems alright. The two of you ready?" he said while opening his arms wide. Alice snugly cozied up to his side. Halia was still staring at him with a pale face "H-how... How are you doing that!?". She almost shouted it, and probably would have if she hadn't been so shocked.

He chuckled softly and said with his best comforting smile "It's essentially a very high Sacred Art, I'll try to explain it on the way. Now, my apologies, but I'll need to grab hold of you to bring you along". It took a few seconds, but eventually Halia carefully stood next to him, while he gently, yet firmly, wrapped his arms around both girls at his side.

He put all his strength into taking off with his wings, but soon noticed that especially Alice her equipment may be a bit too heavy. Only a few meters off the ground he groaned a little in frustration and as calmly as possible said "Alright, I'm a little out of practice, I guess... I'll give us a boost till we're high enough up to glide for a while. Hold on tight!".

He concentrated for a moment and felt the pressure on his wings drop. Aerial elements formed a shell around the three of them, while even more generated underneath their feet. For a split second they almost started to fall down as he stopped beating his wings to concentrate on generating elements, before he let the elements underneath them burst, causing them to shoot up into the sky. Alice yelped briefly while firmly hugging his chest and Halia screamed loudly as she clung to his arm - all the way up. Feeling confident about the height they had reached, and also starting to feel the mental toll of such a powerful incarnation, he immediately spread his wings as wide as he could manage, before giving them a final outward push and starting to glide.

He noticed they were still falling a bit faster than he would like and concentrated. If Vector, or Miller, could do it... With a slight grunt, two more sets of wings rapidly grew out of his back. With six black wings spread wide and occasionally beating to regain altitude, it actually felt rather relaxing to him. As he turned his head to look at Alice, he could see a little panic in her eyes, but as they met his she blushed and calmed down. He could see the fer and panic making way for trust, before she chuckled and managed to teasingly say "If you drop me you're sleeping alone tonight".

He just chuckled and pulled them both a little tighter, before turning to look at Halia. The girl was clinging to his arm for her life, eyes closed. "Halia, open your eyes" he calmly said to her. Slowly the girl opened an eye, and then the other, before marveling at the sight. They were flying high above the central island and it was beautiful. "I know it can be scary, but please try to relax. I should be able to keep up our current pace for at least several hours".

The girl managed to calm down a little bit and carefully asked "Where did you learn such an incredible art?". He laughed sheepishly and said a little hesitantly "Well, I sort of just... Did it when I first needed to I suppose". The girl could only give him a wide eyed, incredulous stare.

On his other side, Alice hummed in thought for a few moments, before asking "Say Kirito-kun, how are we not feeling heavy winds this high up? And how did we get this high, this fast... Flying was never this smooth on a dragon's back, and I think those generally fly even somewhat lower than we are at the moment...".

He smiled teasingly and said "I actually got the idea from watching you heat those meat buns on the side of the Central Cathedral that night". She gave him a questioning look, after which he added "I'm using aerial elements to form a wind barrier around all three of us, basically the same thing you used to contain steam around the buns. Taking off was a little hard with just my wings, so I used a large number of aerial elements under our feet to propel us upwards".

The next hour or so as they soared through the sky, the two of them did their best to explain the workings of the Sacred Arts and Incarnation to Halia. He was glad to see the younger girl ease up a little after that, and eventually she even seemed to somewhat enjoy flying - even if it would take a lot longer for her to grasp the basics of Sacred Arts herself. As they made their way towards the edge of the rather large island, they started to see white marks on the woods below them. Straining his eyes, he could just barely make out silverish white threads.

"Are those... webs?" he asked carefully, to no one in particular. Halia confirmed it for him "Y-yes, some of the further out forests are plagued by large spiders... I believe their webs are actually quite expensive materials in Caestus". He hummed for a moment and then looked at Alice, who shrugged "We were stupid enough to not pick up any 'contracts', but a spider infestation could be a good place to help Halia practice. Put us down at the edge though, not right in the center...".

He teasingly grinned "As you command!" and steeply dove down towards the ground. This time, both Halia and Alice screamed as they barreled down. A reasonable distance away from the ground, he slowed down and gradually lowered the three of them. Carefully putting them down, Halia immediately collapsed, almost hugging the grassy forest ground. Alice just panted for a few seconds, before punching him in the shoulder.

"That was unnecessary!" she pouted as she furiously glared at him. Kirito carefully took a step back and held up his palms in defeat "Sorry... It was a little fun too though, right?". She huffed a little, but didn't seem to protest. After helping Halia back up and apologizing she seemed to have calmed her nerves as well.

Taking a better look around now, they were standing in a small forest clearing. In front of them was a much denser part of the forest, and in the distance between the trees they could clearly see large, white webs sprouting up...

* * *

As they stayed on the edges of the cobwebbed area of the forest, only up to three or four large, dog to horse sized spiders engaged them at a single time. Kirito and Alice quickly learned they weren't much of a threat to them, thanks to their extreme stats. Having found a perfect test subject for Halia's training, Kirito did his best to teach her what he could.

while her fighting style was centered around blocking with her shield, Kirito encouraged her to focus on dodging and moving around her target, something she barely made use of. He limited her to only using Sword Skills as finishing moves, giving him plenty of time to judge her regular techniques. For a moment it felt really strange to him. Who was he to judge someone's talent and skill with a sword? He was just a gamer... But Alice, a Knight, soon commended him on his training techniques, which helped him barrel through it nonetheless.

Half an hour into their training, Halia admitted shamefully to only knowing the Horizontal Skill. Kirito decided to try and teach her some different Sword Skills, although he wasn't quite sure how... In SAO and ALO you'd need to have an appropriate Skill Level for the Skill associated with the Sword Skill you wanted to perform, as well as flawlessly taking the opening stance for it.

Deciding to just give it a go, he performed various simple Sword Skills. The one hit skills Slant (diagonal cut), Vertical (downwards slash) and Rage Spike, the simplest of charge skills that followed a leap to the target with an upward slash. The first two seemed to be doable for the girl, who took to her training with fervor and enthusiasm. Four out of five times she managed to perform the Skills, or Secret Techniques as they were called here, but there still were a few corrections to her opening stances that needed to be remedied with training and repetition.

Rage Spike, being a little tougher to perform correctly, was something she had trouble with. The red glow faltered every time during her leap. A few attempts at the two part Horizontal Arc, sadly also failed - for now. Halia seemed to get frustrated at her inability to perform some of the Skills he had displayed but while they took a break he reminded her "These Skills might look simple, but that's only because I have performed them hundreds, if not thousands of times. You'll get there Halia. There's a saying where I come from; Rome, or.. eh, any large city, isn't built in a single day".

Halia, panting as she leaned against a tree to catch her breath seemed to regain her enthusiasm a little and replied with confidence "Understood. And I already used two new Secret Techniques, so I guess I can't really complain!". She finished it off with a bow and a strong "Thank you, master!".

Alice laughed behind her hand a few meters away and he chuckled nervously "Ehh.. Halia, Kirito is just fine. No need to 'master' me all of a sudden". The girl seemed to accept it, but with some sadness in her eyes. He wasn't quite sure why, but right when he was about to ask, Alice raised her hand and quietly, yet firmly stated "Something is approaching... Something large. Get ready!".

As the three of them formed a circle facing outwards, they patiently and in Halia's case nervously, awaited whatever Alice had sensed. The webs along the trees surrounding the small clearing they had rested in, all started to shiver ever so slightly... Skittering noises, and what sounded like the clacking of mandibles could be heard all around them. Groups of small, beady red eyes started to appear in the shadows of the trees.

"They're... They're everywhere..." Halia quietly whimpered. Before either of them could try and comfort her, however, a bone chilling, hissing voice rung through the clearing "Who daresss ssslaughter my children... My children in their homesss...".

Right in front of Kirito, an even larger and darker spider whirled through the maze of webs with an evil elegance. It's chitin-like shell seemed more like armour plating than anything naturally occurring. Eight burning, crimson red eyes glowed in the shade. It was hanging upside down from the large web cover as it approached their group. Once more the voice reverberated out. No mouth could be seen moving on the monstrosity before them, however.

"Sssspeak, filthy Humanssess! Who daresss face Ssssurgosssa, Queen of these woodsss". Halia was trembling, but Alice just eyed the surrounding treeline, on the look out for any spider that would try and attack them. He was confident he and Alice could handle this, they had faced worse after all. But could they keep Halia in one piece while doing that? He cleared his throat and did his best to confidently state "I am Prime Swordsman Kirito, and I have led my companions here. We were not aware there was a Queen among... Your children. By your leave, Queen Surgosa, I would humbly ask permission to return home and leave you and your spawn in peace".

The large spider took a few 'steps' closer, but stayed out of the clearing "Interesssting... But I'm afraid that ssssuch sssweet wordsss will do you little good here, Ssswordssssman... No... You will be dinner for my children!". At that point, the large number of Spiders surrounding them started to get restless and inch closer.

"Alice, use your sword to take care of the little ones! I'll deal with the Queen. Halia, be careful and stay close to Alice. Shield her from any that slip through, alright?". The both of them nodded, while Alice already seemed to be muttering the Armament Full Control art. Right as the first spider shot out of the treeline aiming for Halia, Alice shouted the final part of her art; "ENHANCE ARMAMENT!".

The blade of Fragrant Olive Sword in her right hand fell apart into hundreds, if not thousands of golden petals, that launched themselves clean through the spider and proceeded to form a whirlwind around the clearing. The Queen screeched out and jumped into the clearing towards Kirito.

Rushing forward to keep his fight away from his friends, he charged and slid underneath the charging body of the Queen. Dragging his Night Sky Sword clean through the softer underbelly as he continued to slide along the ground. Quickly jumping back up behind the ungodly monstrosity, he was just in time to parry a kick or stab really, from one of the legs and jump back. To his dismay, however, the Queen kept charging forward, towards Halia.

The girl shook for a moment, but then seemed to steel herself. With determination burning in her eyes the girl stood her ground as two large spider legs tried to crush her. In an instant, her blade started to shine a violent, bright blue. With a flawlessly performed Horizontal Arc, she cut off one of its legs, resulting in a screeching wail from the Queen.

Seeing Halia freeze up after the higher Skill than she was used to, Kirito quickly jumped over the Queen and landed in between it and the wide eyed Halia. As the furious monstrosity came charging towards them, large mandibles clacking in front of the vile 'mouth', Kirito swung his left fist straight into the burning red set of eight eyes. His hand glowing an even more violent shade of crimson red, before he immediately followed it up by charging with his Night Sky Sword.

A blinding, deep purple glow came off of it, as he started the sword dance known as the Deadly Sins. Having done so on instinct, it being one of his more commonly used Skills in ALO, he only vaguely registered Underworld had been limited to four strike Skills. Deadly Sins instead being a seven part Sword Skill with incredible speed and damage potential. The sudden and powerful barrage forced the Queen back towards the edge of the clearing, while her mandibles and some of its red eyes were gashed out. Arriving there, it got caught in Alice her petal whirlwind, shaving off part of her back legs, but seemingly not doing enough damage to take them off completely. Once again it screeched out - this time, however, clearly in fury instead of pain, before it seemed to ready itself, followed by a high jump - presumably intending to land right on top of the three and crush them.

Right when Kirito and Halia were about to jump out of the way, Alice calmly stated "I've got this". Pointing her sword hilt upwards, she formed what could only be described as a shield of spinning gold above them. Quickly scanning the treeline, there were dozens of dead spiders and spattered, murky red blood. Even some of the trees were cut clean through... Looking up, the Queen was screeching in pain as it landed on top of Alice her insane Armament Full Control art.

Somehow however, as it was screeching angrily, it almost seemed to grow in size... The remaining five red eyes burned more intensely, with trails of glowing red streaming from them. What looked like acid was starting to drip from its mouth and Kirito was just fast enough to pull Halia out of the splatter that burned through the ground where she had stood moments before. "I won't be able to hold it forever... Finish it Kirito!" Alice groaned towards him.

Focusing, Kirito shouted "System Call! Generate thermal element, adhere!". As he gave this command, numerous small fire elements formed in the air around them. He wasn't even sure how many he was producing, only that he wanted to overwhelm this monstrosity. Upon uttering 'adhere', all the elements coalesced on the Queen's body and started to burn their way through its armour. Meanwhile it was screeching and screaming, trying to fight through the hurricane shield of Alice her petals. With a cold look in his eyes as he met the remaining eyes of 'Queen Surgosa', he quietly finished his Sacred Art ritual. "Burst element".

A fiery explosion took place above them. The force and most of the heat being contained by Alice her whirling petals, but they still had to shield their eyes from the intensity of the blast. There wasn't even a screech of pain as the Queen's body was incinerated. As the smoke cleared, there was nothing left above them, but they could hear and see parts of the enormous spider crashing against the trees around them.

Alice reformed her sword and sheathed it again, before taking a knee and panting. After a few seconds, while the others also either sat down or took a knee, she chuckled and said "That was risky, Kirito... Over thirty thermal elements. A few more and I wouldn't have been able to contain the blast...".

He sheepishly laughed and rubbed the back of his neck as he nervously replied "Honestly I wasn't even sure how many I was forming... I just wanted to take out that Queen as quickly as possible. It seemed to be... making use of Incarnation to fight through your petals".

Alice nodded slowly as she hesitantly admitted "I did find it strange that her shell was able to withstand my Armament Full Control, yes... It shouldn't normally have been possible. Each and every petal has a priority of 48 after all". He whistled appreciatively before incredulously stating "Damn Alice... I'm really glad you didn't just run me straight through on the 80th floor that day...".

She huffed a little teasingly and said "Where's the honor in that? I prefer beating my opponents with the skill of my sword, not my Sacred Arts".

As the two of them laughed and calmed down. Halia eventually asked nervously "Is... Is this normal for you? You don't seem too... shaken". Kirito and Alice realized this must have been terrifying for the girl, so Alice quickly walked over and put a comforting hand on her shoulder as she said "My apologies, Halia. I suppose we have been fighting together long enough to know each other's abilities and limits".

The blonde Knight shot him a warm smile, which he couldn't help but return. Upon seeing Halia calm down a little, Alice chuckled at him "Although adhering and bursting the elements, instead of discharging them as arrows is a new one for me... It seems to be rather overwhelmingly powerful, good to remember. Although it would only work on stationary targets".

Suddenly, the three of them were all startled by a loud, high pitched voice shouting "That. Was. AWESOME!". Jumping back up on their feet, the three of them turned to find a girl, maybe eighteen years old happily leaping over the corpses and shattered trees to meet them in the clearing. Her shoulder length, dandelion hair was bouncing along with her movements, much like her short and billowing blue cloak. Her blue tube top and thigh exposing black shorts left little to the imagination, and Kirito was only able to keep a steel face due to his many years of dealing with the various girls in his friend group.

Stopping a few meters away from them, the girl bowed and grinned "Hiya, I'm Philia. Treasure hunter extraordinaire! Pleasure to meet you". Her blue eyes seemed to glimmer with a teasing light as she looked up at the somewhat stunned trio. "Ehm... Yeah, nice to meet you, Philia-san. These are Alice and Halia. And I'm Kirito".

Now it was the girl's turn to blink a little, stunned. Before she carefully asked "K-kirito? The Kirito? The one who cleared SAO...?". Kirito chuckled sheepishly and said "Well, at least I won't have to ask if you're a player... And yes, I suppose that's me, although it was really a team effo-".

Before he could finish his sentence, the girl had suddenly lept forward and was now hugging him tightly. Her face stuffed up against his chest, he heard her say "Thank you for that...". A little perturbed he awkwardly hugged her back with one arm, but then he realized why she probably showed this sudden display of affection. Carefully he asked "You're an SAO survivor too?". He felt her nod.

At that point, Alice loudly cleared her throat and he could hear the slightly dangerous tone in her voice "Nice to meet you, Philia-san. I am Alice Synthesis Thirty". As the girl let go of him, he could see she had a blush on her cheeks, but she kept her grin as she exchanged greetings with Alice and Halia.

"I suppose you're here for the Queen's hoard?" the girl eventually asked them. The three looked at each other, before Kirito sheepishly said "Ehm, honestly we mainly came here to train Halia a little" and he gestured towards the girl. Philia gave him a curious look, but then grinned from ear to ear and clutched on to his arm.

"Well if you'd like to help me, I'll give you a share of the treasure... With my own hero tagging along it should be a breeze!". Eyeing Alice her somewhat jealous look he couldn't help but chuckle nervously as he carefully slipped out of her embrace. "I guess we have some time. And I admit treasure always sounds good".

* * *

It didn't take them long to find a large cavern, littered with husks, bones and pieces of equipment covered with thick cobwebs. After easily slaying the present spiders, they made their way out of the Spider infested woods, finding themselves in a large field. Deciding to stop for some food and rest, the four of them sat down in the burning heat of the sun.

Halia fell flat on her back and muttered "It was eerily dark in that forest, but it's far too hot here...". Alice meanwhile was inspecting her sword and stated "I can help with that, my sword needs to recharge anyway". The knight sprung up to her feet and planted her sword into the ground while muttering something under her breath. Moments later, the Fragrant Olive Sword started to shimmer and expand, into the shape of a sturdy Olive tree.

While Alice casually sat down, leaning against it in the shade, Halia and Philia gasped. Kirito just chuckled and sat down next to his partner, putting an arm around her shoulders. Beaming happily, Alice leaned her head down against him. Halia and Philia were both still staring at them in shock, not really believing or understanding how a sword changed into a tree. "I don't know how you got this high leveled in just the few weeks Overworld has been released, but at least I'm not the only one that's stunned" Philia said while gesturing towards Halia.

The lilac haired apprentice was even more confused at this and carefully asked "what do you mean, released?". Carefully changing the subject and explaining that Halia was a 'native' to Caestus, Philia seemed to understand and apologized. They explained 'released' as the opening of the Travel Gate between where they were from and Caestus.

"That still doesn't explain the tree, though... But I suppose you can tell me about that later. First, its time to take a nap!" Philia exclaimed as she stretched and laid down in the shadow cast by the tree. Internally, Kirito sighed in relief at how the girl at least seemed to stop hugging him. Angering Alice was never a wise idea after all... Halia also seemed to accept the situation and crashed down as well.

After a few minutes, he and Alice noticed that the both of them had actually fallen asleep. They chuckled a little and Alice quietly said to him with a slight frown on her face "The first player we run into is of course a pretty girl. I suppose I should get used to the competition, Kirito". He just pulled her a little closer and gave her a kiss. A little surprised, she blushed and looked up at him. He couldn't help but laugh softly as he teasingly replied "Don't worry Alice, I've only got my eyes on you after all".

* * *

Philia had refrained from playing any VRMMO's the first years after being freed from SAO. While she herself had never fought on the front lines, or in boss fights, she did pride herself on her treasure hunting abilities and had found her own role in clearing the death game that way. Readjusting to regular life in the Real World had been tough, but without having made any actual friends in SAO, her first online game, the allure of Alfheim Online wasn't that big.

When others at school had started talking about this insanely realistic new game, that was completely free. However, she had decided to at least try it out. Her own life had been... boring compared to the thrill of treasure hunting, and it wasn't long before she had found her place in Overworld. There were many monsters in areas that resembled field dungeons and the like and there were numerous contracts to be found to retrieve items from them if you knew where to look. To her shock, many of the 'NPCs', if she could even still call them that, had been very nice to her. And after a while she stopped trying to figure out how they could be so advanced, and just accepted it.

One day she had been strolling through town, just doing some exploring, when she found her way back to the Teleport Plaza. She hadn't run into too many players, only about a handful. When a swordsman dressed in black, around twenty or so years old, accompanied by a beautiful girl in golden armour arrived there, she had been intrigued to say the least. She had heard that if you traveled far enough, you could unlock additional teleport destinations, and she had decided to tail the two of them.

When most of what they did had been shopping, she was just about to return to her treasure hunting, but then she noticed the two of them walking around with two... NPCs? Sure the NPCs were a lot more advanced than in SAO, but she hadn't interacted that much with them. Mainly just 'questgivers' and shopkeepers. It had been dumb luck when she found the two of them the next day as well. Trailing them into an Academy, she witnessed a stunning duel between a high level NPC and the black swordsman. Because she always stayed in the shadows, hidden from sight due to her cloak, she hadn't heard their names.

Still, even more intrigued at how skilled these two apparently were at Overworld, she trailed them all the way out of the city. The two, accompanied by one NPC that seemed to have had an equipment upgrade, seemed to aimlessly wander around the wilds. Did they have any idea where they were going...? She had asked herself incredulously. But then... They flew away. Leaving her behind, hiding in the bushes.

"What the hell..." she carefully uttered. Deciding that this was worth even more of her attention now, she darted off after them through the forest. Every now and then she could see them gliding overhead through the dense treetops. When she came to the field dungeon occupied by numerous large spiders, she had made use of her talents at staying hidden to make her way deeper into what must have been the trio's destination.

The intense battle she just managed to witness stunned her in place. Seeing how friendly they interacted with each other, she had decided to make herself known, and hope for the best. When it became apparent the black haired swordsman was actually Kirito... The one that had essentially saved her life, she could barely contain herself. Only because of how annoyed the quickly revealed AI from Underworld, Alice, seemed to be at her affection, did she let go and try to stay modest.

After scavenging the quickly found cave lair of the Spider Queen, Philia couldn't have been happier. So. Much. TREASURE! She would need to stick to this pair as often as possible... She was beat though. Running after them through the dense woods had taken a lot of energy, and she had run into plenty of Spiders herself. Lazing in the shadow of a suddenly appearing tree... Was very much appreciated. She did her best to feign being asleep as quickly as possible and maybe pick up some of their conversation. Confirming her suspicions, Kirito and Alice kissed as they were cuddled up to the tree. Internally she sighed a little, he was quite handsome after all... Oh well, can't get every treasure... She had grinned internally.

Seeing how the three of them didn't seem to know how to get back to Caestus, Philia offered to lead them back after their rest. Three hours later, without encountering as much as a stray wolf, they found their way back through the large city gates of Caestus. Happy that she had inspected the job board thoroughly before leaving town, she suggested "We should meet my contact at the Grey Hunter's Tavern. We can split the reward for the contract on the Queen if you want?".

Seeing no objection, the four now cloaked individuals made their way towards their destination. Arriving in the rundown tavern, Philia quickly led them through the present drunkards and wayward Knights to the bar. There, the always friendly barkeep greeted her with a smile "Ah, if it isn't our resident treasure hunter! Any new contracts you want to fulfill today, Philia?".

She chuckled and said with a grin "Yup Bardy! That one, right there" and she pointed towards one of the central job offers on the board next to the bar. It read 'Queen Surgosa - Broodmother of the Eastern Woods - 30.000 S'. It also showed a crude drawing of a large spider. The barkeep, Bardrim as she had learned a few days prior, gave her a shocked stare as he muttered "Y-you mean you managed to slay the Queen...?".

She just chuckled cheekily and gestured towards the three trailing behind her "With the help of some new friends, yup! Kirito?". Understanding her hint, he opened his inventory and materialized a large, chopped off spider head. One mandible and three eyes remained, but its sheer size was convincing enough. With one hand he casually plopped it down on the bar's surface. "There you go" he said calmly.

Bardrim stared at the four of them in shock for another few seconds, before he tried lifting it. It took him a few tries and two hands to eventually move it into a backroom, after which he came back with a large sack with clinging coins in it. "Well, there's no arguing with that, Philia... Here you go".

As Philia accepted the reward, she now noticed that the entire tavern had fallen silent and was staring at their little group. Bardrim cleared his throat and said loudly "As you've all witnessed, the Queen has been dealt with... A drink on the house for everyone!". Almost immediately, the tavern's patrons erupted into loud cheers and conversation resumed a little, taking the spotlight away from the four of them.

* * *

Kirito was a little stunned at the warm welcome they received in the tavern, as they were quickly urged to take a seat at a table, where some of the already seated patrons quickly made room for them. After a few rounds of congratulations from a number of Knights and other patrons, he was relieved to find the focus of attention shifted away from them again a little, as everyone went to get their free drinks.

Gazing over at the 'job board' he noticed several dozen contracts, although their fulfilled one, which was subsequently removed, had been one of the larger sheets of parchment. As Philia a little later materialized three sacks of 7.500 Shears, their shares. He and Alice shared a look, before moving their shares over to Halia. The girl got a little flustered and carefully asked "A-are you not keeping your shares? I didn't do nearly enough to deserve this much!".

Kirito just chuckled and waved her protest away "Don't worry about it, you improved a lot. Not to mention that you pulled off that two strike technique for what I think was the first time. In the heat of battle no less! That takes guts, and talent". Alice nodded with a warm smile and calmly added "And besides, it's not like we really need it after all". With some trepidation, Halia eventually accepted the 22.500 shears and stored them away in her inventory.

At that point Philia cheerfully asked him "So how long have you been play-... I mean, how long was it since you arrived here in... Caestus?". Glad that she kept the facade up for Halia's sake, he shrugged and said "Not too long ago...". Not really wanting to explain the connection to Underworld and their equipment...

Philia clearly seemed suspicious for a few seconds, but seemed to shrug it off and continue to cheerfully chat with them. "What are your plans while you're here? Are you going to start an Order, or maybe a town even? I heard some players were starting a colony somewhere far out into the Wildlands...".

Kirito couldn't help but get excited at the prospect "I can already picture it... The Dragon Knights of the Kirito Empire, with a thousand floating islands under our control!". Alice just sighed as she watched his eyes glaze over before she sighed and teasingly said "Considering you don't have any Dragons, it's only fair it would be the Alice Empire".

She had to stifle the laugh that boiled up when Kirito looked at her with sadness and betrayal clearly visible in his eyes, before she turned to Halia and innocently asked "What do you think Halia, would you rather be a proud and powerful Dragon riding Knight of the Alice Empire, or running around on the ground as a Knight of the Kirito Empire?".

The girl just nervously looked at the both of them, stuttering, not really sure what to do. "E-ehm... Well... I'm sorry Kirito, but Dragons do sound really cool...". Kirito was defeated. Slumping his head on the table, he heard Alice and Philia were now unable to contain their laughter. Knowing it's all in good spirit, he sighed and chuckled along. Then he had an idea and turned to Halia "But... I could teach you how to fly without Dragons...".

Alice her eyes narrowed as she pouted "That's an incredibly high level Sacred Art. Don't make promises you can't keep". He shrugged and thought it over for a while, before carefully theorizing "Well... If I'm honest, it felt like Incarnation was different than in Underworld. It was... simpler, took less mental effort. I think if you're System Control Authority is high enough and you know how to do it, you should be able to fly almost indefinitely with a clear sky and the sun in the sky".

After half an hour or so, and a few more free drinks as an added reward, Philia carefully asked him and Alice "So... Will you be sticking around here for a while? Now that I know who you are, I... uh, well I realize you're usually in Alfheim".

As Kirito and Alice were thinking about their response, Halia carefully asked "What's Alfheim?". Alice shrugged and replied sheepishly "I suppose its another region, far away". The girl nodded thoughtfully and later added "I hope I'll be able to explore the world someday as well...".

The three players around the table shared worried glances, but silently nodded along. Then, to change the subject away from something... difficult to explain, he replied to Philia's earlier question "I suppose you could say we wanted a break from Alfheim? And since the uh... Travel Portal to Caestus opened up, we've been exploring a little".

Alice nodded along and eventually said a bit ruefully "I think we'll be sticking around for a while. Starting next week I'll have other duties though, so I won't really be around during the day...". He put a comforting hand on hers, which she received with a warm smile. He calmly replied "We have most of our evenings free, Alice. And I'm sure we can convince Koujiro-san to make your schedule a little less hectic. You've been working non-stop after all". That luckily seemed to cheer her up a little, and he could see the clear look of gratitude in her eyes as she squeezed his hand a little.

Halia asked curiously "What kind of duties do you have? If I might be so forward..". Alice chuckled and said after a few seconds of considering how to explain it "I suppose I'm sort of an ambassador between my homeland, and where Kirito is from".

Philia carefully asked "How has that been going? I've seen some news articles here and there, but I have to admit I haven't been following it too closely...". As Alice frowned a little, Kirito just squeezed her hand again and sighed, before confidently saying "It's an uphill battle, but I have no doubt that we'll get there".

At this point Halia asked puzzled "I thought you and Alice were from the same place, Kirito? She did say that as Prime Swordsman the Integrity Knight Order listens to you".

He didn't fail to notice Philia's inquisitive look, but he just shrugged and carefully said "Well... No offence to Philia-san, but I'm not entirely sure how much of my experiences in Alice her homeland are open to the public. I will say that I've spent a significant amount of time there and one thing led to another...".

As he trailed off a little in his thoughts, trying to explain it in some way that made sense to Halia and didn't give too much away to Philia, Alice just chuckled and said "Kirito-kun... Tens of thousands of people from your world fought in the war, it's not truly a secret anymore". She then turned to Philia and Halia and calmly spoke as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

"Kirito actually found his way to my homeland by accident. Being the man he is, he saved my life, defeated the demi-god ruler of our Empire and vanquished the Dark God Vector. After that he was appointed Prime Swordsman as the head of the Council that then governed the Human Empire". She finished by giving him a quick peck on his cheek, before cheekily adding "He also made me explode my eyeball, but that's a story for another day".

"Wow.." was all Philia could mutter, while Halia froze up in her seat. Before she nervously said "S-s-so you are... you.. My apologies, your highness!" she stood up and did a hasty, but formal bow. Looking around, he was relieved to see nobody else seemed to have heard it and quickly urged the girl to sit down.

"No need for that, Halia, as I said before. We're not here on any official business, nor am I royalty. It's more like... eh, a representative for the council... Not to mention that I don't even really like titles" he admitted sheepishly. "I tried to deny the position as well, but they.. eh, insisted" he sighed deeply.

After a little while, Philia incredulously said "I don't think any of that was really public information... Are you sure you won't get in trouble telling me that?". Kirito had already slouched down in his chair, silently groaning in frustration at Halia's clear adoration. But Alice just eerily calmly stated "I'm sure that if you try to spread that information, the Japanese government will find you. So it should be alright".

Philia just laughed sheepishly, but upon not seeing Alice her expression change even the slightest, and seeing Kirito's apologetic look, she quickly added "W-well I guess I'll keep that to myself then!".

* * *

After that, Kirito was glad that the conversation took a different turn again. Philia and Halia seemed to get along really well, and when it was time for dinner those two went off to meet up with Ellea, while Kirito and Alice made their way back to their rented accommodations. He was looking over some of the options Philia had pointed out in her menu. The Construction tab seemed especially interesting, but there were only a few simple options, like a wooden cabin. Eyeing over his friend list, now also including 'Philia' and 'Halia' he incredulously muttered "It's still weird to see an NPC have access to the Player Menu. Even a friend list with message functions... How do they still explain that as a form of 'magic'?".

Alice hummed for a moment but then said "Well, the same could be said for Sword Skills and the Stacia window in Underworld.. It's just a little more advanced here in Overworld. If you grow up with it as a normal and accepted part of life, I suppose you could get used to almost anything". He couldn't help but see the logic in that. "Oh well, we should log off, it's almost 8PM after all".

Alice nodded, but then seemed to pause for a moment as a blush crept over her face. Carefully waiting for what she wanted to say, Alice eventually asked him "Kirito-kun... Could we.. eh, maybe lie down here for a while before we log off?".

"Sure Alice, I don't mind. But... why?" he carefully replied. Alice looked down at the floor and sighed a little before saying "I feel more like myself here. This body, its truly mine... Not like the metallic one in the real world, or the Caith Sith body in ALO. It truly feels like I am back in my own body. Even though I know its just a copy...".

He immediately pulled her in for a warm hug. As he gently stroked her hair he added "But that's nothing to be ashamed of, is it? I know it's been difficult for you, adapting to the real world and that body...". She sighed softly and without moving away from his chest she quietly added "It's just that... The metallic body is... missing some.. eh, parts".

Kirito hesitantly said "Well I suppose not being able to eat and drink is pretty awful, yes... But I have to admit its a near perfect replica in terms of how you look". She sighed a bit louder into his chest now and with clear annoyance and nervousness in her voice she said "I mean... very specific parts... Womanly parts. Do I really have to spell it out, Kirito? It's a little embarrassing".

The gears in his mind stopped for a moment. After a few seconds he cleared his throat and nervously asked "A-are you.. Are you asking to... eh.. right now?". The girl in his arms pinched him in his side and sighed into his chest "Not right now, idiot... But we could maybe just lie down in bed, and... cuddle for a little while?".

Slowly having regained his composure after that, he put a kiss on her golden hair and teasingly said "Alright then, my love" before he picked her up, bridal style and proceeded to walk towards the bedroom. She yelped, but quickly smiled as she looked up at him. With a few menu manipulations, she unequipped her shoes, golden armour and blue surcoat, leaving only the white dress underneath. After he put her down on the bed and gave her a loving kiss, he too unequipped his coat and shoes, before climbing into bed next to her.

Alice almost instantly snuggled up to his chest underneath the blanket. As he was calmly stroking her beautiful, golden hair, he noticed her opening her menu again, with a little quiver in her hand. While it wasn't set to public mode, he could see her hovering in place for a moment, as if she was hesitating. But then pressed down and moved her menu away. It took him a moment, but then he realized the shoulder straps of her dress were gone...

Quietly he heard her say "Aren't you going to take off your clothes, Kirito?". With a little quiver in his own hand this time, he carefully opened his menu and removed everything but his underwear. Immediately, the cloth covering his skin was replaced by the warm sensation of Alice pressed up to him. She moved a little more onto her back, pulling him on top of her. Those beautiful blue eyes and the blush on her face made him stare for a few seconds, before she put her hand on his neck and pulled him in for a warm kiss.


End file.
